30 Minutes
by ClockwiseDoom
Summary: When Easter decides to eliminate Ikuto and Amu all together, the two are on the run with only their love to keep them safe, while the doubts of their romance linger on both of their minds and danger lurks all around them. Will time be on their side? AXI
1. Preface

30 Minutes

**By: **MyVampireEyes

**Rating:** _PG-13_ for violence and language in later chapters.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own **Shugo Chara!**

**Summary: **When Easter decides to eliminate Ikuto and Amu all together, the two are on the run with only their love to keep them safe, while the doubts of their romance linger on both of their minds and danger lurks all around them. Will love be their salvation, or will time be their demise?

**Author's Note:** I got this idea after listening to **"30 Minutes" **and **"All About Us" **by **T.A.T.U**. After reading the latest manga chapter, this seemed to make me more inspired to do this fanfic. I'm usually pretty bad at updating fanfics, multi-chaptered ones, anyway, but this idea won't leave me alone, so I'll try.

**Also:** The _PREFACE _is from Amu's point of view. The rest is Third person.

--

**PREFACE**

_30 Minutes._

That was all we had left. Easter had demanded Ikuto show himself. With my life as the ransom. As I stood petrified in the middle of the storage room where we stood holding onto each other like life support, I knew there was no hope. I knew Ikuto's decision even before he spoke the words to me.

"I have to, Amu."

He spoke quietly, his voice cracked and dry. I could feel the tears running down my face as I buried my face into his chest. His hands rubbed my back gently, holding me closer to him. My body shook with grief and fear. "Please. Ikuto, don't. Please."

"I can't risk your life." He pulled me slowly away from him, gently and tenderly, so he could look at me. He lifted my chin and I unwillingly gazed into his sharp blue eyes that were filled with determination. "Amu. Your parents would be devastated if they lost you. And Ami.. how would she understand what happened to her big sister? You've got to live, not only for yourself, but for your family. Do you understand?"

His words were not harsh, but despite the reasoning I heard in them, I could also trace the selflessness in the sacrifice. It immediately hit me that he held no regrets; he would protect me with his life, as he was doing now. All that time he had been teasing me, and we'd fallen in love with each other, I should have realized how deep that love was. I pulled away from him and looked at the floor.

"Amu."

He seized my chin, somewhat firmer this time, and forced me to look back into his eyes. This time, I clearly saw the sadness and the start of anger I was beginning to locate in his eyes. "Look at me, Amu. This must be done. If I don't go, they'll continue to hunt us both until they've killed us. I won't let them kill you at any cost."

"I won't let you die!" I snapped, the edge of my patience breaking. I looked up into his wide, blue eyes and tried to muster the strength of my emotion into that one simple gaze. "I'm not going to be without you anymore! If they want you, they get me too. Let's fight them. I'm tired of running. They think we're going to simply give in and let them get us! But our love is something they can't touch, Ikuto!"

Ikuto sighed. "I'm tired of running, too. But the only way to end it is for me to give myself up."

"You really think they won't kill me just because you're dead?!" I glared up at him. "Really, Ikuto, I'm younger than you, but I'm not stupid! Their plan is as clear as water! They'll take you out, and just because I have the lock, they'll kill me too!"

Ikuto didn't respond, and instead turned his back on me, running a hand through his chin-legnth indigo hair. "Well, we have to do something."

I couldn't speak for a moment. Fire was burning in my throat, realizing the truth. The half-hour given to us by Easter had nearly elapsed. I swallowed down the lump of fire in my throat that felt like it were burning my throat raw, and took in a deep breath of fresh air to calm myself.

Finally, I opened my mouth to reply, but a high cackle cut us off. In fear, I clutched Ikuto around the waist and he wrapped his arms around me in comfort as the ridiculing laughter grew more and more pronounced.

"I have to admit, the little girl's rather smart." The voice vibrated on the outside, though it felt much closer to me than from behind the exterior wall. "What makes you think we'll stop after we've killed you, boy? It's because of that brat you're in this position."

Ikuto growled. "You would love nothing better than have me dead anyway, though, wouldn't you,_ Dad_?"

I gasped. "Ikuto.. this man's..?"

His voice broke with hatred, his fists clenched and teeth grinding together in a snarl. "No, this man's not my father. He's my step-father, who happens to be in charge of Easter. He's the one who's put this death sentence on the both of us."

"That's right."

Ikuto whipped around, dragging me with him, to face the voice that sounded as if it were right behind me. A figure stood in the doorway, not even two feet from us, holding a hand gun that was pointed straight at Ikuto's heart. My scream of fear could not be contained, and as the man pulled at the trigger, multiple things happened at once; Ikuto tossed me to the ground, and I hit it with hard contact; the sound of bullets erupted like an ear-splitting scream through my ears, and I heard the man's jeering laugh.

30 minutes was up.


	2. 30 Minutes Of Content

**Author's Note: **Thanks so much for the reviews!

**WARNING: **This also has spoilers for the manga chapters 27-28, with some minor changes. I do not know the whole story of how Ikuto got away from Easter and to Amu's house, what time all of this occurred, or who the hell this "Gozen" guy is. He's apparently in charge of Easter, and Ikuto and Utau's step-father is a managing director. So I'm just make believing at some parts. The rest is all in line with the manga, at least until the next 1 or 2 chapters.

Also, there's gonna be a new season of Shugo Chara! YES! That makes me as happy as knowing there's going to be a Season 2 of Vampire Knight!

Anyway, onto the chapter! XD

--

**CHAPTER 2: 30 MINUTES OF CONTENT**

"Hey, Ikuto!"

Ikuto opened his eyes to see Yoru feverishly nudging him on the side of the head. So like the little cat. "What is it, Yoru? Did you overhear what they're planning?" He muttered sleepily.

"Yes! Ikuto, they're gonna kill you!" Yoru's voice was high pitched, obviously distraught. Ikuto's eyes widened.

"Okay. That settles that. We can't stay here. Did you get to get the key..?" But Yoru had already dropped the key in his lap. Smiling, Ikuto rubbed his head affectionately. "Good job, Yoru." He praised.

Slowly getting to his feet, Ikuto cautiously unlocked the door, and peaked his head out to see if anyone could see him. When he saw no one, he stepped out into the hall and motioned for Yoru to follow him. "First matter of business, get my father's violin back."

He opened the closet door and saw it lying on the floor. He carefully replaced it inside it's carrier and slung it over his shoulder. "Okay, now let's get out of here." Yoru lead the way back to the room he had been locked in and Ikuto purposefully left the door open.

"They'll find out anyway." He told Yoru, who was watching him skeptically. He swiftly walked over to the back of the room to the window and lifted it. The cold air didn't turn him off to escaping this way, and he jumped out, landing on his feet perfectly like a cat. Yoru joined him a minute later, smirking.

"You'd think you were the cat here, Ikuto-kun."

"Be quiet, Yoru. Do you want them to find us?" He hissed, but a grin was making it's way onto his face at Yoru's compliment. He walked quickly, wanting to get away as fast as he could from Easter without making too much noise. He knew it was only a matter of time before they realized he was missing. He got a couple of streets away when he was too tired to continue walking, and took a rest in an alley, his eyes dropping from lack of sleep. Yoru hissed disappovingly at him.

"Ikuto, this is no time to sleep! We're in an alley and Easter could have seen that you're gone by now!"

"Five minutes," Ikuto muttered sleepily, already asleep.

Yoru folded his arms cutely and huffed. "All right, but only five minutes, Ikuto, we can't linger somewhere for too long."

Ikuto did not respond, and five minutes later, Yoru's attempts to wake him up were in vain. After his fifth attempt, Yoru gave up. "Dammit, Ikuto!" He looked around for a place he could possibly transport Ikuto to sleep, but couldn't find anything. There were only houses around here, strangers. No abandoned buildings. The only other place he knew of was Amu's house, but -- That was it! Amu's! The girl had been friendly enough with Ikuto, as he was to her, even though they were supposed to be enemies. Knowing he had no other choice, Yoru managed to lift Ikuto and fly him towards the girl's room.

When he landed inside, keeping a tight grip on Ikuto so he wouldn't wake and drop him, he saw the girl sleeping soundly, dressed in her pajamas. She must have fallen asleep early as well. Yoru set Ikuto on the bed gently, and giggled silently at how awkward the scene looked. They looked like a couple lying there like that, and Yoru caught Ikuto's expression of strained sleep turn into peace almost at once. Taking the violin case off of him and setting it on the end of the bed, Yoru took the opportunity to search around outside for any sign of Easter.

--

"He's gone?"

Kazuomi looked up from his newspaper to the woman fidgeting on her feet, looking nervous.

"Yes. When I checked the room, the window was open and he was gone."

"Hmph." He smirked, setting his newspaper onto his desk and folding his hands underneath his chin. "Ikuto's not stupid. As rebellious as that boy is, he also knows I won't let him off so easily. And neither will Gozen, who's beginning to doubt his uses. He has not found the Embryo yet. And he never will. His attempts to find it are in vain. He'll never gain the freedom he seeks. I think it's time we discard ourselves of all wasted garbage. We'll dispose of him tonight. Under Gozen's orders."

"As you wish." Sanjou bowed respectfully, raising no protests, and disappeared out the door.

Once she was gone, the man turned to stare out of the window once more, crumpling the newspaper into a single ball.

"You made the hugest mistake when you opposed me, Ikuto." He whispered. "Now you'll have to pay for that."

--

Amu's eyes slowly opened. She turned her head slightly to see her alarm clock. 9:00 P.M. She let out a small sigh. She'd fallen asleep earlier than she'd meant to again. But it wasn't completely unexpected; with as many X-eggs she and the guardians had been cleansing lately, and all of the effort she'd put into character changing that exhausted her so much, she fell asleep quickly nowadays. She rolled over and met a huge shock: Ikuto sleeping next to her.

It took her a moment to register who it was lying there, and how close he was. Shrieking in surprise, she leaned away from him, nearly falling off her bed in her shock. She noticed his peaceful expression, and wondered how the hell he'd gotten here. She also wondered why she had a strong urge to touch his hair and ears like the last time he'd fallen asleep near her. Before she could think anymore on it or wake Ikuto up, she heard her father coming down the hall. He must have heard her scream.

Hastily, she wrapped her blankets over her and Ikuto and feigned sleep just as the door cracked open. She didn't open her eyes to see if he'd left, but when she heard the door close, she took it as a good sign that her father was gone, and unwrapped herself and Ikuto, who was still sound asleep. Amu found herself staring at him, unable to fall back asleep, either in uneasiness knowing that a boy was lying next to her, or the peace in his expression mesmerizing her, she didn't know. Either way, her lack of sleep was his fault. She wondered if this fluttery feeling she'd had lately had anything to do with him, too.

Knowing she wasn't going to get back to sleep, she got up and headed into Ami's room, offering to take her out for a walk, wanting to get out of the house for awhile. She only hoped her parents didn't go into her room and find Ikuto in there. Cursing Ikuto internally for his perfect timing, she led Ami outside into the cool fresh air from the night. Maybe it would help clear her head.

--

"Ikuto.."

Yoru spoke into Ikuto's ear, attempting to wake him up. When he got no response, he tried again. "Ikuto? Ikuto!"

Still nothing. Damn, that boy slept soundly! Taking a deep breath, Yoru prepared for the only other way he knew to wake Ikuto up.

"IKUTO!"

Finally, he was successful. Ikuto jumped up as if an alarm clock had gone off and when he realized where he was, turned to look at Yoru. "Yoru! What the hell am I doing in Amu's room?!"

Yoru huffed, floating in mid-air. "Don't look at me! Your violin took you to the safest place, apparently! I only helped you up here. And about that thing; it's giving me the creeps! Will you please get rid of it?"

Ikuto's answer was in his expression. "No, Yoru. It's the only keepsake of my father I have left. And what do you mean it's giving you the creeps? It's just a violin."

Yoru shook his head. "Ikuto-kun, I'm telling you.. there's some dark aura in it, a lot of negative energy."

"Negative energy?" Ikuto blinked in confusion and walked over to the object, kneeling down and opening the case slightly. The effect was immediate; Feeling as though he had been slapped, Ikuto was thrown to the floor, landing on his back. Forcing himself into a sitting position, he gazed at the violin case in utter shock. Since when did it have that kind of energy?

Yoru shivered. "See, Ikuto? We need to get rid of it right now!"

"I.."

But before Ikuto could make up his mind, the door opened, and Amu entered, holding box of something that smelled delicious. Ikuto sniffed. "Is that..?"

"A chocolate-filled taiyaki, yes." Amu replied, holding it out for him. "I bought it for you."

Ikuto smirked. "For someone who's mad at me, you sure remember that I like chocolate."

Amu blushed scarlet in embarrassment and turned away from him, her back to him. "Don't expect this all the time!"

Ikuto smiled, shook his head, and began eating. He ate one bite before speaking to her again. "So, do you always leave your window open?"

"Eh?" Amu turned to him with the cutest blush on her face, her cheeks sticking out more from the redness on her face.

"You should really keep your windows closed, Amu." He told her seriously.

"So a hentai guy won't be able to sneak into my room.. thanks for the advice." Amu replied, her tone mild with sarcasm.

Ikuto smirked, and gazed at her as she glared at him. "Amu, the real definition of a hentai is someone who happily grins as he or she looks at someone who is sleeping, like you."

Amu's blush grew more and more evident. "Ah! No! I didn't _grin_, I.."

"So you_ were _looking at me?" Ikuto teased, putting on an innocent expression.

Amu scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest, but didn't respond. There was silence for a few moments as Ikuto finished his treat, and stood abruptly. "Well, thank you, Amu."

"Eh?" She unwraveled her arms and stared up at him in surprise.

He headed towards the door. "Thank you for letting me stay here. I'll leave you now."

"No, wait, Ikuto."

Ikuto turned slightly to face Amu, who was twiddling her thumbs together. "Er.. you can stay for a limited time in my house, since you don't really have a place to go. But only for awhile!"

Ikuto was about to open his mouth to argue this, when he heard someone calling Amu's name from downstairs: Tadase. He could also hear the mother greeting him and calling for Amu.

"Gah! I'll be right back, Ikuto!" Amu hastily jumped to her feet and darted out the door. Snickering, Ikuto listened to Amu's parents suggest she take Tadase up to her room so they could talk privately. Great. That meant the "Kiddy-king" would be coming up here, and discover he was here. Amu, however, probably knowing the consequences of what could happen in this scenario, told Tadase she had something to take care of first, then they could discuss whatever it was he came here to tell her. Not even a minute later, she came running up the stairs and barged through the door, temporarily startling Ikuto.

"Ikuto, quick! Get in the closet!" She panted, out of breath. "I'll let you out once he leaves!"

Wasting no time, Ikuto quickly obeyed, just as Amu called for Tadase to come in.

They began their talk, which involved Tadase confessing his love for Amu. Ikuto, confined in the closet, could feel the anger boiling in his veins, but did nothing, waiting to hear Amu's reaction. His heart felt as if an arrow had been shot through as she said she was glad he felt that way, because all along she felt he had rejected her. Damn Tadase for getting there before him! If only he had the courage to confess sooner!

Moments later, he was released from the closet by an uneasy and embarrassed-looking Amu, who suggested they go to bed. Raising no protests, as he was still tired, he made to go to sleep lying next to Amu again, but she looked at him with a glare he'd never seen on her before.

"Pervert! You get the floor!"

She snuggled herself up in her blanket, falling asleep within minutes. Ikuto lay awake watching her. She looked like a sleeping angel, very beautiful and cute even in sleep, and he longed to reach out and caress her face, and hold her close to him. But the earlier confession of Tadase rang through his mind, and he knew that she would never accept his feelings while her heart was still Tadase's. Some time later, he got cold, and knew that even if Amu got mad, he wasn't about to sit here and freeze. He snuck into her bed and was barely asleep when Amu awoke.

"GAH! Baka! What did I tell you about sleeping in my bed?!" She made to move away from him, but Ikuto wrapped his arms around her, preventing her from escaping.

"It's warmer on your bed," He pointed out. "And I'm actually a sick person who needs some love and care."

"Yeah, you're sick all right.." Amu muttered, trying to pry Ikuto off of her. But even as tired as she knew he was, he was still no match for her. _I might as well accept it,_ she thought, _my fate is being in Ikuto's arms.. _

"Wow, kids sure are warm." Ikuto whispered quietly, his eyes closing as he hugged Amu close to his chest. Amu's eyes narrowed.

"Stop treating me like a kid. Next spring, I'll be starting Junior High."

"Ha. I'll be in my third year of high school by then." Ikuto remarked, snuggling even closer to her.

"You know," Amu blurted out, "You're so much like a rebellious kid. You treat me like a child, when you're one yourself."

Ikuto's death-like glomp on Amu switched to a hug, and his hot breath hit her ear as he whispered naughtily, "Then spoil me like a kid."

"Ugh.. you pervert!" Amu turned herself away from him, closing her eyes to fall asleep.

Minutes passed in silence, and Amu thought freaky cat-boy had finally fallen asleep when he oh-so kindly broke it. "So, I heard what the Kiddy king confessed to you earlier."

Amu glared, swerving her head around to look at him again. "His name's Tadase. And yes, he confessed. Which makes me wonder.. you're almost a senior in high school, Ikuto. Isn't there anyone you like?"

She was taken aback momentarily as Ikuto's eyes opened, and were filled with such an emotion she could not figure out what it was. "I do." He whispered. "It's you I like."

Amu laughed. "Yeah, sure. Here you go teasing me again." But for a moment, she wasn't quite sure if it was a joke; Ikuto's eyes became pain-filled, and he tore his eyes from her to look outside her window at the moon.

"Well, good night, Amu.." His voice was slightly sharper, and the abrupt ending to their conversation confused her.

"Good night, Ikuto." Amu replied, blinking in curiosity at the strange boy lying next to her, who may or may not have been joking that he liked her. But that pain-filled expression she'd seen on him just now... had he been serious?


	3. 30 Minutes Of Pain

**Author's Note: **Sorry this took so long! I've been kind of busy. Anyway, I did a lot of thinking about how I wanted this chapter to play out, and decided to have reference to the latest chapter, but completely come up with my plotline for it. So, if you read the latest, Tadase and Ikuto had a confrontation, in which Ikuto began to ridicule Tadase, which resulted in Tadase running off crying. So Amu told Ikuto off, and Ikuto said something to hurt her too (Don't remember at the moment, gomen. XD), but this was only to protect her, to keep her away from him and Easter for good. But Yoru came to Amu and told her Ikuto was in trouble and she and Tadase ran into him. This is where I leave off.

--

**CHAPTER 3: 30 MINUTES OF PAIN**

He couldn't see anything but darkness.

Darkness.

He yielded to it, like always. As if he had any other choice. He'd tried fighting it before, to no avail. Now wasn't any different. It wasn't as if he could break through the dark blanket, anyway; it was much too strong. His emotions, his desires, his strength, was all insignificant to the darkness, and to those who'd caused it: Easter. They'd always had the control over him to make him do what they wanted. They used like him a puppet for their own uses, and when he failed.. he was no longer needed.

Yet, he kept trying.

His step-father despised him in every single way, kept him alive only because he was valuable to the company. Without Ikuto in his back pocket like an obedient little tool, their search for the Embryo would have progressed slower, and without him and Utau's talents used to his purposes, that company wouldn't have the resources it had. Ikuto knew this. He also knew the lengths his step-father would go to ensure he got the Embryo, and dispose of anyone who was in the way. Like Amu. Amu, the innocent eleven-year-old girl, who'd fallen into this by chance, just by having three suspicious, unheard of Guardian Eggs. He knew it wasn't her fault, but sometimes, Ikuto couldn't help but blame that girl for the trouble he was in, the extended efforts he had to go to just to appease his step-father. But, despite it, he couldn't hate her. If anything, he found himself in love with her. A love his step-father would never allow. He'd told Ikuto once before he'd never let any girl open her heart to him. Because he didn't deserve it.

He could see himself almost in an outer-body experience, as if there were two of him. There was him as he was now, unwilling to fight the darkness, letting it consume him; then there was the darker, blank-eyed him, already consumed by it, looking more like the villain than he ever had. And he could see Tadase, who was yelling words at him he couldn't hear, and then he saw her. Amu, precious Amu, was staring at him with fear-filled eyes.

He tried to call to her, to tell her to run, to leave him, but she could not hear her. She would not be able to hear him. He wasn't aware his body had moved; he felt disconnected from it, like his mind felt separate from him. His arm extended, and within seconds, Amu was on the ground, holding a bloody nose, and looking at him with absolute hurt in her eyes. Tadase ran to her side and helped Amu to her feet, and she looked at him, the Ikuto whom she did not know, and whispered, "I know you didn't mean it. I know it's not you right now, Ikuto."

"Amu, you don't know what you're saying!" Tadase hissed. "This cat-thief has been, and will always be, our enemy! He meant everything he did!"

No, he didn't. No, _I_ didn't. He struggled to tell her this, struggled to open his mouth and tell her the truth, that he loved her, and only her, and would never, ever lay a finger on her that would hurt her in any way. But like the blanket of black clouded his vision, it also clouded his ability to speak the words he so desperately wanted to speak.

"That's right." He smirked, although it was against his will. "The Kiddy King is right, little girl. We've never been friends, and we'll never be allies."

Amu smiled, not believing him. "Then, if that's true, why did you help me all of those times? If you believed you wanted nothing to do with me, why did you help me?"

_Because I wanted to protect you._

He could not respond.

"See, you can't answer, can you? Because you can't say the words that you want to tell me, how you hate me, how you want nothing to do with me, because it's not true, is it, Ikuto? You want to tell me something else, there's something else that you're trying to say. Come on, Ikuto. Tell me." Amu's eyes filled with tears, desperation capturing them. "What do you want to tell me so badly?"

_I want to tell you I love you. _

"I want to tell you that you're pathetic in the fullest definition of the word. What are you attempting to prove, brat, with that kind of talk?" He found himself laughing, a jeering, ridiculing laugh. "If that's how you hope to win this, then you're sadly mistaken."

"No, it's not how I hope to win this," The tears fell down her face, and Ikuto felt as if an arrow had been show right through his heart, breaking it into pieces at the hurt he was causing the girl he loved. "It's how I hope to save you.. and I intend to do just that." The tears came faster now. "I know you weren't kidding, Ikuto. When you told me it was me you like. I know it was really you. Not this shadow of you."

_Amu.. _

"Foolishness. I don't need saving!"

_Please save me.. Amu.. _

"No! You don't want her to save you!"

Amu's eyes widened. _What...?_

"Ikuto?" Her voice cracked through the tears. She began to walk towards him, blazing determination in her eyes. Tadase seized her arm and attempted to pull her back.

"Amu, what are you doing? Stay back and let me handle him! He'll only hurt you!"

"No, he won't." She turned to Tadase, and wrenched her arm free of his grip. "I know he won't. It's not really him, Tadase. I can sense there's something wrong here." She turned back to Ikuto. "I'm going to save you, Ikuto."

_Amu.. I need you to save me.. before I'm too far gone.._

_Amu.._

"NO!"

He slapped her hard again, knocking her back to the ground. She hit it with hard contact, but got to her feet almost instantly. "I'm not giving up. No matter how many times you hit me, I'm going to reach you."

"I've had quite enough of you!"

As she made to move towards him again, Tadase knocked her to the ground before Ikuto's claw could slash at her.

"Amu! I'm telling you! Let's get out of here before you get seriously hurt! I'll take care of him!"

"No, Tadase-kun! I know I can reach him!" Amu forced herself to her feet again, ignoring the pains from the scrapes on her body. "Don't try to stop me! I'm going to get to him!"

"No, you won't."

It wasn't him who had spoke this time; Amu turned to see a woman that she quickly realized to be Utau's manager, Yukari Sanjou, coming towards her.

She was smirking. "You won't save Ikuto no matter what you do. He's under our control, and a simple child like you won't be able to save him."

Amu growled. "I should have known it was you Easter people behind this. Utau hinted that she'd broken free of you people, but that Ikuto was still in your pocket."

Sanjou placed a hand on her hip. "Yes. Utau may have broken free, but our control over Ikuto is much stronger. We planned that from the beginning."

"Why are you doing this?!" Amu demanded. "Why are you doing this to Ikuto?!"

Sanjou's eyes narrowed. "That's none of your business, little girl. I suggest you give up and leave Ikuto to us."

"Not a chance." Amu's fist clenched. "I think it's time to use a different tactic."

She turned back towards Ikuto. "My own heart.. unlock!"

Using the Humpty Lock, she transformed into Amulet Heart and flew intently towards Ikuto. "I knew it! The sense of darkness is stronger now that I'm in Chara mode. Now I'll be able to help you, Ikuto."

_Please.. Amu..._

--

Kazuomi snickered. "That stupid girl can try, but it'll be to no avail. Our control over the boy is too strong."

He watched the satellite feed in which the girl kept trying to reach his step-son. He was happy to know he still had such a strong hold over the boy, and that it wouldn't break anytime soon. But if, by some miracle, this girl managed to reach him and break the control, then they would have him killed. He wasn't about to have a love-struck teenager that had no use what-so-ever to him and Gozen lurking around when he could potentially betray them. Not that he hadn't already. He'd helped that elementary-school girl numerous times. And he had paid for it dearly. Kazuomi had taken his violin, the one that had belonged to Ikuto's father, to try and keep some measure of control over the boy. And so far, that had worked to his advantage. He'd used the X-egg energy and placed it as a carrier for the violin, and the violin had done it's job of controlling Ikuto.

The girl tried again, only to be knocked back down. Like he'd thought, it was no use. No use at all. He laughed.

--

"Ikuto, I'm not going to give up on you!" Amu again forced herself up.

Sanjou gave an ear-splitting cackle. "Really, how stupid are you? There's no way you can manage to save him, you idiotic girl!"

Amu ignored her, and tried again. "Ikuto, I've been wanting to tell you this for awhile. Ikuto.. I like you, too. And I want to be with you, and help you, as much as I can. Ikuto.. I want to be your friend. Not your enemy."

_I want to be your friend too.. _

"I don't care what it takes. How long I've got to stand here, I'm going to break that hold they have over you. I care about you, Ikuto!"

He could feel, not knowing why or how, the sudden surge of an emotion he could not pinpoint building up inside of him. The strangest urge to cry, and the strongest push to fight, was taking over his every resolve. _Fight it_. _Fight._ That's what he had to do. If Amu was willing to fight until she could no longer stand, so would he. He fought.

"I want to fight the X-eggs together, like we did before. I want to hear your wishes, your dreams; I want to spend those many hours together like we did at the park. I want to do that again, Ikuto. You and I. I want to push the things that draw us together and connect them!" The tears had broken like a dam; She began to sob, sob over him, as she finally reached him, and placed her arms around his waist, and he found himself unable to do anything. Unable to hit her, or knock her away. And he could see, in the distance, an emanating light beginning to come through the darkness.

It broke.

And all the darkness was gone, captured by the light, and as his eyes opened, they fell onto the only thing he wanted to see - Amu.

"Amu.." He whispered.

"Ikuto. I knew we could do it. I knew you were stronger than them." She smiled happily, a single tear falling onto his face. He was aware that she was holding him in her arms, his head resting on her knees, just like the time she'd found him lying unconscious in an alley after having fought and suffered. But now was different; he wasn't suffering anymore.

"Thank you.. Amu.." The tears, unbidden, came running down his face. He never thought the day would come where he'd cried again. He had told himself long ago he wouldn't cry again. Not since his father left, had he cried. But these were different tears. These were tears of happiness, not grief.

"It's okay, Ikuto. You don't need to be so strong in front of me." Amu spoke to him gently, in a motherly kind of voice, and the tears came faster, until his neck was drenched in them, and he didn't know why he was crying like this, but knew he would be okay after this. No matter what, because Amu was there.

And he knew she would always be. Amu was his light in the darkness. The pain was gone.


	4. 30 Minutes Of Fear

**Author's Note: **Thanks so much for the reviews, guys! I really appreciate it! :) Here's another chapter for you guys since I love you all so much! XD Now is when the rating goes up, due to language and minor violence. It'll really be going up on the violence meter soon. Not gorey, but more violence than I've ever written. I would also like to apologize again for all of the grammar mistakes I've made in previous chapters, and in, most likely, future chapters. Damned Word pad.

--

**CHAPTER 4: 30 MINUTES OF FEAR**

The sound of shattering glass could be heard half-way down the hall of the top-story floor of Easter. Even with the blood seeping endlessly down his fingers, Kazoumi was too angry and too distracted to care. The remnants of the satellite, that had been destroyed by Kazoumi's fist as it plummeted through it, lay scattered on the floor, that was beginning to dirty with the mild drops of crimson red blood.

"No more child's play..."

Kazoumi breathed heavily as if he had just run a marathon, eyes popping with rage. "I'm going to make those brats wish they'd never heard the name Easter."

"Boss?"

Sanjou had returned and was now knocking on the door. Without waiting for a response, she entered. She gasped when she saw the broken Satellite feed and her boss's bleeding hand. "Boss, are you okay? You're bleeding!"

She rushed towards him, seizing a Kleenex at the end of the table and wrapped it around the wound. As she tended to him, she asked nothing about how he got the wound or how the satellite had become the way it was; she could work out the details for herself. When she was finished, and washed her hands clean and sighed, she turned and faced him again.

"That girl has become involved than we expected."

"Yes." His voice was still sharp with rage. "She managed to break Ikuto out of our control, and it's unlikely we'll be able to motivate him back into it, even with taking that damned violin. With her around, we won't be able to kill Ikuto. The little bitch may think she's gotten the best of us by turning the boy against us, but I'm not about to let it end here. " His throat felt constricted as he let out a low chuckle.

"What are you going to do?" Sanjou's voice was breathy and eager. She was definitely interested. It seemed she was as out for revenge as he was.

He turned to look at her, a smirk forming on his features, eyes narrowing. "Gozen and I have already discussed it. We want the shoot-to-kill order on Ikuto as well as that girl, but It seems that Ikuto has the Key that goes to the Humpty Lock we've also been after. And I think that girl definitely has it. Together, they'll most likely form the Embryo. Seize the weapons, kill the holders. Give the order to any business member or guard you find. This is top priority."

"Gotcha." Sanjou bowed, and exited the room, shutting the door softly behind her.

Kazoumi lifted his wounded hand and examined it. "I shall gain the Embryo for Gozen, and no elementary-school student is going to stop me. Nor is my step-son. I don't care what I have to do."

--

"How long has he been out now?"

"Not too long, Ran. I'm just lucky I got him here while Mom and Dad weren't home."

"Lucky they took your sister, too, right, Amu-chan?"

"Yeah. With Ami here, it'd make things worse."

"Worse than they already are? Amu, you have a boy in your room!"

"It can't be helped, Miki. I couldn't just let him go off somewhere with Easter most likely going to track him down. I had to bring him here."

"Still, it seems against your parents rules to even let him in this house.."

"_Miki_.."

"Should I make him a meal so he'll have something to eat when he wakes, Amu-chan? He's really weak, desu."

"Okay, Suu. Just try not to burn the house down."

"No problem! Just leave everything to Suu!"

His eyes felt like lead. He wanted to open them, and see what was going on, but yet, he was too tired, much too tired, to open his eyes. Sleep demanded he slump back into its slumber, but he fought the drowsiness and managed to open them. His vision was blurry at first, but after a few seconds, cleared, and he saw Amu's face in front of him, eyes worried, but smiling as she realized he'd awakened.

"Ah! Finally you're up!"

Ikuto blinked. "How long have I been out?" It didn't feel like it was that long..

Amu laughed at his groggy expression. "You've been out of it ever since you managed to break their control, and that happened nearly six hours ago."

Ikuto's eyes widened. "Six hours?! Why didn't you wake me up?"

She blushed. "Well, you looked so peaceful, and I knew you were exhausted from all that happened today, so I let you get your rest. Besides, you're cute when you sleep."

Ikuto smirked. "And were you grinning while you watched me again, Miss Hentai?"

She blushed even more, so that her face resembled a ripe tomato. "Don't call me a Hentai, pervert!"

And she turned her back on him, arms crossed. Ikuto smiled at her, and forced himself into a sitting position. He was dizzy almost instantly.

"Whoa!"

Amu turned around at the sound of his gasp, eyes widened in shock, leapt out of her chair, and gently laid him back down. "What are you doing, idiot? You need to lay down!"

But she'd rushed up too quickly; she lost her footing, and before she could hit the floor, his arms had captured her, breaking her fall, and ended with her landing on top of him. At that instant, something like an electrical surge passed through him as her body landed on his, their faces inches apart, eyes beseeching into each others, swallowing each other whole with the intensity of their gaze. The pink blush was still painted on her cheeks, and he could feel his own face getting hot with embarrassment, yet they stared into each others eyes, and he was leaning more into her than he'd realized, until their lips were centimeters apart, and he could practically taste the sweet scent of her mouth, when he pulled away. It was much too early. And besides, she'd never accept him in that way.

Before he could do much else, she'd lifted herself off of him, her back to him.

"GAH. I'm sorry! I really am a klutz!"

Ikuto hid his expression behind his hair and looked away from her so she wouldn't see him smiling. "You really do fall down often, Amu. But I forgive you for being a klutz." Even without looking at her, he still knew she was blushing madly. His own face was still beet red, and his throat felt as if someone had ignited a fire inside of it.

"Um, Suu is making you something to eat so it should be ready in a few. I'll.. I'll go check and see if she's finished." She exited the room without looking at him, her face hidden by her hair, and he knew she was desperate to hide her face. He, too, needed time to regroup.

--

Yoru was nervous. Even though Ikuto told him to stay behind, he did not wish to be here. Not in the middle of Easter Head-quarters. Sure, he could lurk out of sight for awhile, but how long would it be before he was caught? He sincerely hoped he could get the dibs on Easter's next plan and escape in time to tell Ikuto what they were doing. It would all be for nothing if he was captured here. So far, he'd heard nothing yet, and he was running out of air vents to hide inside of. Just when he was about to exit one, he stopped, catching the sight of many pairs of feet; Sanjou was speaking to a group of Easter's guards, who, to his surprise, were all armed.

"If you see Ikuto and a girl by the name of Amu Hinamori, I demand you give the shoot-to-kill order. Leave them alive only if you want to pay for it later. Gozen and Kazoumi themselves have issued this, and their orders, as well as their state of minds are not to be tested. After killing the children, please be sure to bring back all of the possessions on them straight to us. We believe they have things we want. You all know who Ikuto is, and the girl is short and has pink hair and is reported to be eleven years old. What's more, the boy is bound to be with her, so it should be no problem."

One of the tall guards bowed. "As you wish, madame."

Sanjou smiled an evil smile. "Report back to us when you have finished the job. They're bound to be anywhere, but the best bet is at the girl's house. I have the address. But make sure you hurt no one else other than our targets. However, should anyone else get in the way, and stop you from doing your task, do what you will with them. The less witnesses, the better, in my opinion."

Yoru could hardly contain his gasp of shock. These people, the very people Ikuto had devoted his life to, as unwilling as he was, were now planning on killing him? Actually _killing_ him? The very guards that had taken care of Ikuto when he was young, now were the ones who would take his life? He had to act fast; He had to reach Amu's house before these people did, and warn Amu and Ikuto to get out immediately. He no longer cared if anyone saw him. He was faster than all of them put together, anyway. And now was no time to be lazy.

He rammed into the air vent so hard it busted open, and before the guards could even turn around to look, Yoru was speeding down the hall in mid-air, and within minutes, had exited Easter, his mind filled with only one thing: warning Ikuto and Amu.

--

Ikuto shoved the last bite of his rice ball into his mouth, chewing slowly as he watched Amu. She was still quiet, hardly looking at him, and when she did, she looked quickly away. While he knew that had been embarrassing for both of them, he kind of missed their eyes meeting every few seconds, and that electrical surge, what ever the hell it was, between them. He yearned to reach out and touch her face, just to feel that surge again..

But just like he'd done when he'd made to kiss her, he stopped himself without knowing why. He'd never been this unsure about touching her before; he'd catch her if she fell, hold her while he flew with her in his arms, touched her face without feeling all funny. Why couldn't he now..?

"Ikuto!"

He was brought out of his thoughts by Amu, who was running towards the living room window. "It's Yoru!"

Ikuto sat up quickly, and Amu managed to open the window, allowing Yoru entrance, and closed it again.

The little guy was out of breath. "Ikuto.. you.. need to... get out.. of here... now!"

Ikuto's eyes widened. "Is..?"

Yoru panted. "Easter.. they're coming here right now! Ikuto, they're going to kill you and Amu!"

Almost out of instinct, Amu and Ikuto looked at each other. Her eyes were wide in the same expression of fear, and his fear of, not his own safety, but of hers, took over every particle in his body. Without hesitation, he shot up, ignoring the dizziness that overcame him. He fought through it, and swiftly seized Amu in his arms, character transforming and ignoring her scream of protest and shock as he made to dart out of the door with her.

The effect was instantaneous; As soon as they were out, several gunshots erupted through their ear drums, and all he cared about in that moment was getting Amu out of here alive. He felt the bullets seeping into his flesh, could feel the warm oozing of blood as wounds erupted, and yet he made his body continue moving. He knew Amu was safe; His arms were around her like a protective cage, and he could feel her hot, panicked breath on his neck. Before he knew it, he was in the air, and away from the house, where, when he was able to look, saw over fifty security armed guards unable to reach him in his height. Breathing a sigh of relief, he held Amu closer to him. But the darkness was coming, the dizziness returning. He could feel his limbs weakening, and forced himself to keep a hold on Amu. He could hear Yoru speaking to him in a panic, but it was distant, as if in a long tunnel. And then, he felt himself falling, unable to stay levitated any longer, and the last thing he heard before he fell into the black void was Amu's voice as she unlocked her own heart.


	5. 30 Minutes Of Apologies

**Author's Note:** Another chappy for you guys! Thanks for all the awesome reviews! They keep me going! At the beginning of this chapter, there is some tension between Ikuto and Amu. You see, Amu's in a tough situation as is Ikuto. She kind of blames him for her getting into this position, on the run, hiding. It's not going to be a field day for either of them. There will be fights, lots of tears, lots of hurt feelings and lots of making-up before I'm done with this. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, because I sure did writing it! :)

--

**CHAPTER 5: 30 MINUTES OF APOLOGIES**

"Ikuto!"

"Is he alive? How he managed to get us here to this garage before he collapsed from the pain is beyond me.."

"I don't know.. he's hardly breathing! Ikuto, are you okay? Please, Ikuto, wake up! We're not safe here! Please, Ikuto!"

She was pleading; her voice was cracked with a suppressed sob. His mind was urging him to wake up and comfort her, let her know he was okay. But the pain kept him from opening his eyes and seeing her beautiful face. He struggled to breathe. His lungs felt as if they were filled with water. He also felt sick, and was afraid if he opened his eyes, all he would see was darkness. But he forced them open as she called his name again. He would fight anything for her.

Upon seeing him awake, she gasped and breathed a sigh of relief before jumping onto him and wrapping her arms around his neck so hard he thought she would break it. Ran, who had been conversing with her, gasped and attempted to pull her off. "Amu, don't choke him!"

"Oh! Ikuto! I'm so glad you're all right! For a moment, I thought you were dead, you were hardly breathing!"

"Naw, Amu, they couldn't kill me that easily." He was too shocked to sound teasing and unconcerned; it was only starting to occur to him, as the images floated back into his mind, how lucky they were to have escaped. But more than that, he was surprised by Amu's actions. _Must be from the shock_, he thought.

Not even a moment after he spoke, Amu seemed to have regained her senses and roughly pushed him away from her, turning her back to him. "Well, it would certainly have been problematic for me if you had been dead, but that's only because they're after us both... I wouldn't care otherwise."

Here she went with her cold, uncaring attitude. The "cool" side of Amu. The side he knew was a faker. Still, those words had charred him like fire. He forced himself to his feet, nearly falling over from the dizziness, and Amu turned back around and attempted to help him back up, but he knocked her hand away as she made to grab him.

"Ikuto.." Through his hair that was covering his face, he saw out of the corner of his eye, her expression of realization. "I.. I didn't mean that, I.."

"I'm going to go see if the coast is clear, all right?" His voice was somewhat cold and sharp. Amu flinched back from the sound of it, and turned away from him again.

"All right.. just.. just be careful, okay..?"

He knew she was trying to apologize for the words that had cut him.

"Yeah."

He walked away before she could see just how badly the words had affected him. Despite the fact of knowing that her "cool and spicy" character was a put on to cover her true emotions, some times repeated words have a deep effect than it's meant to. His own step-father had said those very words to him once before. But he would not let Amu see that re-opened wound. Or at least, not in front of her.

--

"They evaded us, Boss.."

Kazoumi turned to the woman standing in his office looking more nervous than usual. She tugged at her sleeve, looking to the floor. "The children. Apparently, they were forewarned of our arrival, because they somehow knew we were coming."

Kazoumi smirked. "That Guardian Chara of Ikuto's. He must have ordered it to lurk behind and find out what we're up to. I have to admit, that boy's smart. He doesn't put anything past us. He knows all of our secrets, passwords, every little document this company owns. In the hands of the Guardians, he'd be moulded into telling them everything, potentially bringing us down. It's even more crucial now that he be killed immediately."

"Understood, sir. Which is why I'm taking it upon myself to locate them. I'll handle them personally." Sanjou smiled an evil grin and walked over to the security desk near Kazoumi where she pulled out a hand-gun, and ripped off the safety label. It was already loaded. "After all, I know Ikuto as well as you do. I should find him with ease."

Kazoumi smirked back at her. "We've practically raised him since he was a child. And we, therefore, know all of his hiding places."

Sanjou nodded and disappeared out of the door. Kazoumi turned back to stare out the window.

"You can never hide from me, Ikuto. Never."

--

Amu didn't know Ikuto had returned until a package was thrown at her that she barely managed to catch, breaking her out of her thoughts. She looked up in time to see him stumble past her.

"Eat. We're going to need all of our strength to get past those guards." He sat down a few feet from her, against the wall.

She blinked, looking down at the food, then gazing back up at him to see him eyeing her in curiosity. "You mean they're still there?"

He smiled, a sad, bittersweet smile. "When Easter's given a demand, they will not dare disobey. They're not leaving until we do."

Amu cocked her head to the side. "But didn't you just leave to get food?"

His smile turned proud. "I managed to whiz past them while they were on their lunch break, well, more like dinner break, but it won't be long before they discover we're in here."

Amu nodded slowly and unwrapped her package, revealing a tray of spaghetti and meatballs. Touched that Ikuto thought of her, she smiled at him as he unwrapped his own food and began to eat, and was still watching him a few moments later until he caught her staring.

"What the hell are you smiling about?" He raised an eyebrow.

Amu blushed and broke her trance. "Oh! Well, it's.. I.. I just wanted to.. thank you.."

He went back to eating. "For what?"

She swallowed down some of her food. It was delicious. "For protecting me, earlier.. and.. and buying me something to eat. Really, Ikuto, thank you.."

"It was no problem."

He was finished way before her, and for a single minute, Amu suspected that he had inhaled his food, but when she looked at what he'd eaten, she realized why it had been gone so quickly and her stomach turned. "Cat food and milk?!"

He looked at her in surprise. "Yeah. So?"

She was grossed out. "I know you have a cat image and all, but really, don't you eat _human_ food?"

He laughed; a real, genuine, warm laugh. It made Amu feel all warm and fluttery inside. "Of course I do! What, do you think I could live on cat food and be this tall? You've got a lot to learn, Amu. Yoru found this, and I just went along with it because I didn't want to be out for too long. Though I will say that it isn't as good as human food..."

He stood up to throw out the trash, when he groaned quite suddenly, falling to his knees with a thunderous crash.

"Ikuto!"

Food forgotten, Amu jumped up and seized Ikuto around the waist before he could pass out onto the floor. "Ikuto!"

"I'm fine." His breathing came in pants. "It's just a pain spell. I'll be fine."

But as she lifted his body so his head was on her lap, she noticed the few blood stained patches staining his legs and the bigger patch of crimson on his side that was leaking quite a bit of blood.

"No, it's not! Ikuto, didn't you notice they had shot you? Why didn't I notice? I should have paid more attention when they were shooting at us." She was somewhat distraught, guilty for not keeping an eye on him as he had for her.

He stared at her, gazing at her with an expression his eyes Amu couldn't quite distinguish. "Why didn't you?" He asked quietly.

She looked at the ground. "I don't know, I.. you kept it hidden so well..."

He turned his head. "I meant to."

"What?" She looked at his face that was averted away from her. "Why? Why did you..?"

"I didn't want you fretting over me.. and besides, I didn't want you thinking there was a chance I could die."

Amu sucked in a breath, realizing what he'd meant. "Oh, Ikuto.. I'm.." She choked up.

At the sound of her nearly breaking into tears, Ikuto turned his head back to look at her, his eyes wide, shocked. "It's okay, Amu.."

"No, no it's not.. let me help you, Ikuto... " Her voice was soft and guilt-filled, and she furiously wiped at the tears that were falling down her cheeks.

And he let her.

She ripped off her long sleeves leaving only a t-shirt and tore it so she could wrap it around each of Ikuto's wounds. "I don't have bandages or anything right now, but once we get out of here, I'll patch you up more effectively." She wrapped the side wound twice, gently and tenderly, as if she were afraid of hurting him.

Soon, night had fallen, and Ikuto was patched up so that the bleeding had stopped, though the wounds themselves still hurt enormously. How he had managed to walk around and fly he had no idea. The pain must not have had gotten to him earlier.. or maybe it was his emotional pain from Amu's words that overridden the pain from his body.

"I'm sorry.."

He'd been dozing off when he heard her whisper those two words. He wasn't quite sure he wasn't dreaming until she spoke again. "I'm sorry... for earlier. I'm so sorry, Ikuto.. I don't want you to die.. ever.. please.. stay with me.." Her eyes were closed; it seemed as if she were asleep, but he knew it was just a light doze, not enough to get to begin sleep talking.

He smiled, and wrapped her close around him, holding her to his chest. "I forgive you, Amu. I could never do otherwise."

She said nothing, and for a moment, he thought she'd fallen asleep. But then he realized she had been trying to assess her thoughts. "I could never not forgive you, either, Ikuto.."

He was about to ask her if she wanted to try and leave now that it was dark, when a loud bang erupted around them, the door ahead of them becoming unhinged as it was blasted to the side.

"Finally found you." The woman stood in the doorway, dark and menacing.

Amu's eyes snapped open in fear at the sound of the new voice, and Ikuto jumped to his feet, lifting Amu up and hiding her behind him. His eyes were glazed with hatred. "Sanjou. I should have known he would send you after me too."

She smirked. "Of course. I never disobey an order. Such a shame I'm going to have to do this to you and your precious little girlfriend over there, but you're in our way. You chose to betray us to help that girl, and you chose to become useless to us, so now we must dispose of our trash."

He heard Amu's gasp of fright and held his arms out to protect her as Sanjou reached into her front pocket and pulled out a hand gun, raising it to Ikuto's chest height. Ikuto, however, did not so much as flinch.

"That's right. You know you've got to kill me first before you can get to her." He snarled.

Sanjou chuckled. "My, Ikuto, I've never seen you so protective of a girl, especially one as young as she is. Tell me, are you intending to feed her to the strays?"

Ikuto growled loudly, threateningly, realizing a comment that Amu did not understand. "That's none of your business!"

Her eyes narrowed. "Oh, I think it is. After all..."

She lowered the gun to Ikuto's leg and pulled the trigger. Amu screamed in horror as Ikuto fell to his knees, a fresh new wound erupting, crimson blood splattering onto the floor.

"You are our pawn."

"Not anymore." Ikuto's voice was throaty and deep, as if he were struggling to speak through the pain.

Sanjou shook her head. "Such a rebelling boy. It looks like that little dose of pain wasn't enough for you. How about I punish you some more?"

"Don't play with me like I'm a child." Ikuto seethed.

Sanjou glared. "You're right, this is beyond's child's play. Time to end this little game of tag."

She raised the gun on height with his head instead, so that it was directed right between his eyes. "Farewell, traitor."

And she made to shoot, multiple things happened in very quick succession; There was a loud scream of "NO!"; Amu, in a total adrenaline rush, knocked Ikuto to the side as the trigger went off, knocking them both to the floor; Sanjou redirected the gun to Amu and pulled the trigger. But there was nothing; no pain, no blood. Nothing.

Amu raised her head in time to see Sanjou struggling to get the gun to work.

"Dammit! Why didn't I bring another pack?" Apparently, the gun had run out of bullets. The red-faced business woman sighed angrily and faced them, eyes glowering. "You pests may have escaped for now, but my men outside have enough bullets to put enough holes in you until you look like Swiss cheese."

Amu looked down at Ikuto to see him passed out from his new wound. Gritting her teeth, and placing a hand around the lock around her neck, she opened the bag behind her and let Ran out of her egg. She knew the other two were much too scared and sleepy to do much help right now.

"Well, you're going to have to wait on that fantasy, because we're out of here!" Amu grinned at Ran who understood immediately. "My own heart.. unlock!"

Before Sanjou could do much more than gasp, the transformed Amulet Heart seized Ikuto into her arms and darted outside into the cool, wispy air. The woman had barely run out to scream "Shoot them!" at the dumbfounded guards when she was already half a block away from them. Knowing she had no other choice, she carried the unconscious boy and herself back to her dismantled, but sturdy house, knowing the Easter idiots wouldn't come back; they wouldn't think them stupid enough to come to a place they already were.

She opened her patio window and set Ikuto down her bed, not caring if his blood got on it. Her parents still weren't home, and she could always say she'd gotten her period a little early, though she didn't know if they'd believe that or not. Letting the other two out of their eggs now that they were back home, she addressed them.

"Miki, go get the First Aid kit. Suu, bring us some towels. Ran, please get a cold, wet rag so I can wash the wound!"

"Okay, Amu!" They said in unison and darted off.

Amu changed back into herself and worriedly gazed at Ikuto. "Please be okay, Ikuto. You have no idea how much I need you right now.."


	6. 30 Minutes Of Plans

**Author's Note:** Sorry this was late. It was originally supposed to be posted yesterday, but I a bunch of things have been going on - such as being in a tornado and just not feeling too well. I had second-thoughts on keeping Sanjou a part of Easter since she left them in the anime/manga. But Easter needs some good operators too, and Sanjou makes a pretty good obedient villain. But I'll make her come around soon. Then it'll just be Gozen and Kazoumi who are the real threat. Again, I'm SO sorry this came out so late. I'll try to update more frequently.

--

**CHAPTER 6: 30 MINUTES OF PLANS**

When Ikuto came to, he recalled the events that happened moments, or perhaps hours ago like he were an amnesiac regaining their memories all at once. He bolted into a sitting position, automatically groaning and reaching for his head. It felt really tender. It also felt as if something were wrapped around it, making it heavy. Blinking, he moved his hands along the front and back of his head, feeling the thick cloth he knew to be bandages wrapped around it.

He closed his eyes, smiling slightly. That Amu. Of course she would worry over him like that. He'd do the same for her.

He heard the door click upon opening, and slowly turned his head to see Amu entering, holding a tray of food. She was embarrassed when she saw he was awake and looking at her intently. Apparently, she'd just been meaning to sneak the tray in undetected, but now that plan was blown out the water. She looked at the carpet, her cheeks reddening with a huge blush and she began stuttering.

"U-um.. I'm not sure.. w-what kind of f-food you like, so I had Suu just w-whip up something.."

Ikuto just stared at her. While he'd do the same for her if she were injured, he'd, of course, be less annoying about it. But that was one of the things he loved about Amu - she was incredibly annoying. Even if it was in a loving way.

"It's fine." Ikuto said softly, still gazing at her. "I'd eat whatever you made."

She raised her head quickly, her expression slightly shocked. "Y-you w-would? B-but.. if it's _bad_.."

Ikuto shook his head, immediately regretting it when a sharp pain shot through it. He winced, and Amu looked at him in concern. "With three Guardian Charas, and especially that green one, you're bound to make good food." He said seriously. "When I first met you.. when you'd made that tart.. I didn't tell you, but for someone who was just starting out, it was perfectly well made. Way better than something I would have done. Most people can't get it's design or essence right, but you made it very good and beyond it. I was surprised."

"T-thank you, Ikuto." She whispered.

They stared at each other, into each others contrasting eyes - golden yellow into blue, and Amu felt the electrical spark seeming to radiate from Ikuto's heart through her body again. She was sure, at that moment, Ikuto felt it too, from his own heart. She realized now that she never felt anything like this around Tadase. This electric spark, or whatever it was, she could not describe or comprehend. But it was something she knew she wanted to feel many more times.

Coming out of her trance, Amu walked forward and placed Ikuto's tray in his lap, slowly and gently. She was slightly taller than him now, since he was sitting in her bed, near the edge, directly facing her. Ikuto looked up from staring at the tray and Amu found herself staring into his eyes again, and the spark grew even stronger. She broke eye contact and turned around, her heart beating as if it were going to jump out her body. "I.. I have to go clean up the kitchen. Enjoy your food. I'll be back."

She practically raced out the door, and Ikuto knew she was desperate to get away from not him, but the electrical static erupting between them. Smiling, he began eating, and took in the taste of Amu's great cooking. He knew he wasn't wrong about her. She was everything he wasn't, and he wanted to know more about her, although she practically told him everything. Perhaps what he wanted... was to become more like her. And yet... he wanted to be different from her. He considered this slowly. Within the last few months, the fact that he liked Hinamori Amu became less and less truthful to him. No, he didn't like her; he loved her. And he knew, based on that electrical current just by staring at him, that she was in love with him too. Or very near it.

There was no going back, now. Easter was now after both of them, and the doubts he had about ending things for good with her -- because they'd been there more times than he could remember -- vanished. They couldn't escape from this feeling, love. They were both already in too deep. And now all that was left was drowning or swimming through it.

And he would not let her, or himself, drown.

He finished his meal hardly realizing it. His mind was too into it's thinking mode, about Amu, the current situation, his father; He kept wondering how his life would be without Kazoumi in the picture, and if it were just him and his mother again. His real mother and father. Would he and Utau still be helpless slaves of Easter? Or would his father have let them break free of that destiny, and become who they wanted to be? He wasn't sure. He had no memories at all of his father, or his father's love, if there was any. He always wondered now, if his father left them because he hated him and Utau, instead of the fact that Easter was now reeling in his children. It was something he knew he would never know. And he wished, with all his being, that he could.

He knew if his father hadn't gone away, and he hadn't become a puppet for Easter, he would never have met Amu. Would not meeting her, having a life with his real father, have prevented him from meeting her? And more importantly, was all of this pain brought on by Easter worth it? Was it all worth it just for Amu? If his father were here now, would he help him clear his feelings up about her? Like everything else, he didn't know.

All he knew now was that he and Amu were in terrible danger, and he had to protect Amu at all costs. No matter what.

The door opened then, breaking him out of his thoughts. He looked up through his long fringe of Midnight hair to briefly meet Amu's eyes, noticing she was much more composed now. He suppressed a smirk. Silently, she walked to the bed and sat down next to him, her gaze to the floor, her hands shaking. She was so nervous. Ikuto wondered if she was that afraid of him..

"Hey.. Ikuto?" He barely heard her she whispered so quietly.

"Hmm?"

"Easter.. they're.. they're really going to kill us, aren't they...?" Her voice broke.

Ikuto lifted his head up quickly, and faced Amu, who was staring at him with frightened, pleading eyes. So this is why she was shaking.. it wasn't him at all..

"Amu.." He slowly, hesitantly, reached out and stroked her right cheek. She did not flinch from his touch, or pull away, or show any sign that she didn't want him to. That surprised him too. Usually she would have smacked him away and called him a pervert by now.

"I'm scared, Ikuto," She admitted, her eyes welling up with tears. "After barely escaping them... it made me realize.. we may not be so fortunate next time. And my family, and your sister... what if they target them because they want us so badly?"

Ikuto ran his hands through her short, strawberry pink hair. "Knowing my step-father, he'd definitely do something like that. But their beef is with us, not our families. They'll probably follow us wherever we go."

Amu looked up at him, confused. "'wherever we go'? Ikuto, are we going somewhere...?"

Ikuto sighed. "I've been pondering over it for the last few hours. As long as we're within sight of Easter - at school, or home, or around friends, we'll be easily found. Then it's more likely for them to kill us and anyone around us. They sure won't hesitate to take out bystanders or anyone who attempt to help us. So I've got a plan. It's going to hurt, Amu... but.. we have to go into hiding.."

"Hiding.. leave my family.." She said softly. She hesitated a moment before answering, and the tears finally rimmed over and fell down her cheeks. "I.. I guess we have no choice. I don't want to do it, but I know they'd be so sad if they lost me.."

"I would be too." Ikuto told her gently. "I have to protect you at all costs. It doesn't matter to me if they get me, but you.. you're the innocent one here, Amu. You're a victim who doesn't have to be a victim."

"But, Ikuto, you're just as innocent in all of this as me! You carry the Dumpty Key, and I the Humpty Lock. So basically we're in this together. You just want to break free of a destiny you don't want! Is that so wrong?!" She threw herself into his chest and began sobbing. Bewildered, Ikuto could only stare at her in shock and wrapped his arms around her waist, trying his best to comfort her.

"To them, yes. My step-father intends for me to stay with Easter until the day I die."

Amu's body shook. "That bastard won't win! I won't let them kill you!"

"And I won't let them kill you.. but.. Amu.. I do not want you throwing yourself into the line of danger just for me. Your life is much more valuable than mine. You have a baby sister you need to look after.. and your parents.. they wouldn't be able to bear losing you.."

"And what about you?!" Amu pulled away from him sharply and looked at him in fury. Ikuto was beyond bewildered now. Amu was so strange. "Are you simply going to let them kill you?! Your mother, your sister! Think of them! Your sister will be beyond a wreck if she finds out you're dead! And I'm sure your mother would be --"

"Amu." Ikuto said quietly. "My sister would be sad, yes, but I'm sure she'd be able to move on. She's strong."

"You're such an idiot!" Amu snapped, and she outstretched her arm and smacked him clean across the face. "But you know how she is! She'd turn the grief inward and blame it on herself! Utau would lose inspiration for her singing career and she'd be in a darker hole than she already was! Is that what you truly want for your sister?!"

Ikuto held his right cheek that was red from where Amu smacked him and said nothing, looking at the floor.

Amu seemed satisfied that she knew she was right. "So here's the deal. Neither of us can afford to die here. We have to fight to stay alive. And we'll both make it out okay." She re-tossed herself back into his chest and wrapped her arms around him. "Or we'll die together."

Ikuto fought a smile and shook his head. Jeez, this girl went through multiple phases of mood swings!

They sat in silence again until the sun faded to black and the window Amu had left open began to emanate a cold breeze. She shivered and unattached herself from Ikuto and leaned over to shut the window. Her shoulder's were hunched, Ikuto could see, and her body movements seemed as if she were scared stiff.

"So.. when do we leave.. and where do we go..?"

She turned to face him, the tears beginning to fall again. Ikuto stared into her eyes. "Tomorrow morning. We have time for goodbye's, enough time for me to explain to my sister what's going on. And I'll leave you to have some alone time with your family. Where we'll be going just leave it to me."

She wiped her tears and smiled slightly. "Thank you, Ikuto."

Ikuto nodded absently. "I won't let them hurt you. I promise."

--

"So they escaped, did they?" Gozen looked up from his cup of tea.

Yukari Sanjou shifted on her feet. That was quickly becoming a habit."Er.. yes, they did, boss. The boy was injured but the girl, Hinamori Amu, character transformed and got them both out. Where they are right now is unknown."

"Oh, not true, Sanjou dear." Gozen smirked widely. "After all, that violin of Ikuto comes in handy. I got a tracking system put on that thing a few days ago, when the boy decided to be a little rebellious puppet and went to the girl's house."

He took out a remote control and pointed it to the screen behind Sanjou. She turned and stared in awe. "Is that..?"

"Yes. This tracking device states exactly where they are now, how far from the violin they are, and how far from us they are." Gozen scratched his chin. "So, they're at the girl's place. Clever of them, to go back to a place we already were. They must be feeling as cornered as a rat whose being cornered by a mob of hungry cats. I'm positive they're planning to flee. But no matter. We'll let them have their last moments with their families. Well, for Hinamori at least. There's only one other person besides his dead-beat mother that Ikuto can go to."

Sanjou's eyes registered in realization. "Utau.."

Gozen laid back in his chair. "When he goes to her, we'll get our men to attack. He won't be expecting us to kill him directly in public. Give the word out to any on-duty personnel and prepare for the morning."

"Got it." Sanjou nodded her head and exited the room, leaving Gozen alone. He flicked the remote and the screen switched to show Amu and Ikuto in her bedroom where they were cradling each other. Gozen smirked.

"After all, I love a good game of tag."


	7. 30 Minutes Of Love

**Authors Note:** Hello guys. This is my last chapter for the next week. I'm going to be visiting a friend of of town, and I leave later today, so I just wanted to update the fic for you guys at least. :) This chapter is just a filler, really, but still essential to the story. Basically, it's a fluff chapter between Amu and Ikuto. And I mean FLUFF..

--

**CHAPTER 7: 30 Minutes Of Love**

"It's all about us (all about us), it's all about, all about us, all about us. We'll run away if we must. We'll run away if we must, 'cause you know it's all about us (it's all about us), it's all about love (it's all about us), in you I can trust (it's all about us), it's all about us.." - **All About Us, T.A.T.U. **

**--**

The day's hot weather barely lingered on the air now. Cooler temperatures had come in, along with a shore-like breeze that left many pedestrians leaving their windows open in an attempt to cool off their houses. Amu lay awake on her bed, covers withdrawn and tears running down her cheeks. The cool air did nothing to calm her, knowing what she would have to do later today. If anything, it made her blood run colder. Turning her head slowly, she looked at Ikuto, lying asleep on the floor next to her bed. He was curled up like a cat, and Amu managed a smile. There were many times she'd seen Ikuto look the part of an alley cat, but this was one of the few times he'd actually played it. She noticed, by the furrowing of his eyebrows, that his sleep was strained. He knew, like her, that today was not going to be a pretty day. Today was the day both of them had something to sacrifice: their families. For how long, they didn't know. With Easter, it could potentially be forever. And Amu knew this. Today may very well be the last day she ever saw her family again.

She quickly and forcefully pushed that thought out of her mind, before she could not contain the dam of tears anymore and broke down completely. It would not do to lose it now. Maybe once they were in hiding, and the real truth of what was going to happen to her and Ikuto dawned on her. Though there were times, like now, that it threatened to come down upon her, she knew she had to be strong. She had to use the facade of her cool and spicy character, and truly use it this time. No faking now. She could no longer fake something as important as her feelings.

Her feelings on the journey she had to take... and her feelings for Ikuto.

At the sound of a waking groan, she rolled over onto her side to see Ikuto had awoken and was getting to his feet.

"Hey, Amu... can I close the window? I'm freezing."

"Yeah, go ahead. It's doing me no good either." She nodded.

Ikuto sleepily walked towards the window and shut it gently, and Amu shook her head, a smile daring to form on her lips. The freaky-cat boy sure was cute when he was half-asleep. She had to give him that. She felt the weight on her bed shift, and turned her head just in time to see Ikuto sitting next to her, simply staring at her.

At that moment in time, they were both thinking about the same thing:_ I will protect you_.

"Are you holding up okay... Amu..?" Ikuto asked softly.

Amu nodded slowly. "Yeah.. so far."

Ikuto's eyebrows formed into a sad line. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I had to get you involved in this.."

"Don't be! Ikuto, you were just doing what you had to do when you got me involved. Honestly, do you think a person with three gaurdian charas would go unnoticed by Easter, anyway? Especially already having a vendetta with the Gaurdians, that I would inevitably have joined?" Amu asked seriously.

Ikuto flinched. "No. Easter would have found you, but perhaps things wouldn't have gotten this bad if it weren't for me. If I could have left you alone like I was supposed to.."

Amu glared at him. "Would you stop being so self-loathing? Please? Ikuto, you should know.. I regret nothing. Nothing. I don't regret meeting you or getting involved in this. It may be bad right now, but this is happening for a reason. Everything happens for a reason, whether or not we know why. Just like the lock and key. You have the key and I the lock. We were given those items for a reason, and although the time may not be right to finally unlock them, I know the time will come soon. Eventually."

Ikuto stared at her, stunned. "Amu.."

She smiled. "Although today may be hard to get through, I know we'll be okay. I'll be fine, because I'll have you with me. I might be so scared that I feel like I'm asphixiating, but as long as you're with me, I can be calm and breathe normally. Well, maybe not because I find I have breathing problems when I'm around you, but..." She stopped herself, eyes widening as she realized what she'd just said. Where the hell did that come from?

Ikuto chuckled, and leaned forward, mere inches from her face, their lips a short distance from meeting contact. "So.. I give you breathing problems, huh?" He leaned in closer, so that their lips nearly touched. Amu's breath hitched. "How about now?" He whispered, hot breath on her face. Amu reddened.

"Y-yes.." Amu admitted. "Whenever you're with me, I feel like I'm getting all breath robbed out of me. Even if all you do is tease me, I fall for it every time. Like now.." Her eyes shifted, cheeks still a beet red.

Ikuto's hands reached up and caressed her cheeks. "What if I told you that I'm actually not teasing you, Amu..?"

There was silence; Amu stared into Ikuto's blue eyes, as deep with emotion as the depths of an ocean, intensity as strong as the waves that crash along the shore. She could only stare, mesmerized by his eyes, and knew that he was telling the truth. All this time.. the teasing had been a way to show he had cared. A way to keep him from admitting his true feelings. And she... she had been too blind to see it.

She felt as if fire was burning inside of her, her very being, the flames licking her insides. Her throat was dry as if she was incredibly thirsty, and she found herself thinking that she wanted Ikuto's lips to wet the dryness. As if he knew, Ikuto hesitated a second before he kissed her, lightly and tenderly, his lips meeting hers, and she responded by opening her mouth to gain him entrance to her inner wall, where he explored the depths with his tounge, and she closed her eyes as she realized, with astonishment, that this is what she wanted all along. She hadn't simply liked Ikuto; she loved him.

Wanting him to know that, she responded, not knowing how she knew to do it, but knowing it was right. She'd never known a thing about kissing a boy before, or getting kissed herself, but right now she felt none of the advice or truthful details were enough to describe what this first kiss truly was. It was something she never thought of, something she could only dream of far back in the canals of her mind. This first kiss... was something she'd never be able to imagine.

They broke apart, foreheads together, both breathing as if they had run a marathon. Ikuto's arms were wrapped around her waist, and Amu had her hands placed on his chest, her head just as high as his neck. He didn't seem to mind that he'd had to lean his head down to kiss her. When she looked up at him, he was smiling. A genuine, real smile. Before Amu could gawk, his smile turned playful.

"Wow, Amu. You look like you just saw someone's head get ripped off. Was my kissing really that bad?" He was smirking teasily, but there was a note of seriousness in his voice.

Amu shook her head and whispered throatily, "No, Ikuto. You were.. fine. Just fine." She was still reeling about the fact that she'd just recieved her first kiss. "I.. I think it was me. I'm not yet experienced with kissing or.. anything."

Ikuto rolled his eyes, and laughed. "You may only be eleven, but you sure as hell responded. Any other young girl wouldn't know how to respond. What have you been watching, Amu?" There was that playfulness again.

"N-nothing!" Amu stuttered, blushing furiously, at the look on Ikuto's face. "I've never seen anything like that, you pervert!"

"Ah. Finally, you call me a pervert again." Ikuto sounded pleased. "But just now, you yourself was acting like a pervy kid."

"Was not!" Amu defended, turning her back on him promptly, arms crossed.

"Aw, Amu. I'm sorry. Did I upset you?"

"Shut up, cat boy. Why don't you go back to your napping?" Amu snarled.

She felt Ikuto's breath on her neck and stiffended as he naughtily began touching her neck and back. "I'm awake now, pervy kid. Why don't you help me get back to sleep?"

"Aw, get your hands off of me, you damn pervert!" Amu tossed his hands off, huffing. "And don't call me a pervy kid!"

Ikuto was laughing. "Amu, don't get so mad. Can't you know a tease when you hear one?"

"Not when it comes to you! Don't play around with me like that!"

"I'm sorry."

She turned back towards him to see his saddened face and her eyes widened. "Ikuto, I didn't mean it like.."

"I know. After all, if we're to be boyfriend and girlfriend, I've got to show you I truly love you, don't I?" He smirked at her.

"Boyfriend and girlfriend... I guess that's what we are now, then.." Amu realized.

Ikuto shrugged, grinning. "Apparently so." Then his expression turned serious again. "Are you okay with that..?"

Amu thought. She knew Tadase was most likely was not going to like this. Tadase, the boy she thought was going to be her first love.. that almost seemed a wild fantasy now. Now, that love seemed.. childish, an infatuation rather than love. Simply liking someone.. and loving someone.. where did the boundaries end? When did liking become love? Where did the ends meet? "Yes. Tadase.. he'll get over it. He deserves so much better than me, and.. Ikuto.. I think you do, too, but you chose me.."

"No." Amu met his eyes, intense as before he kissed her. "I think _you_ deserve so much better than _me_. But I.. I can't keep myself from wanting you. Or loving you. I tried before, tried so hard to resist. But you.. you captivate me. I don't think I could ever love any girl as much as I love you."

Amu's eyes teared up. He was actually... _confessing_! No teasing, no playfulness in his tone. A sincere, heart-felt confession. His eyes told no lies. "Ikuto, I.."

At a loss for words, she simply lunged forward and pressed her lips to his, kissing him with as much force as she could muster, putting all of her feelings and stregnth into that kiss alone. Ikuto tensed for a moment from the sudden affection, but soon, his hands were in her hair, running his long, slender fingers through the pink teses. Amu pulled away after a minute, her eyes now holding the emotion, a smile playing her lips, that were wet and held the remnants of Ikuto's sanguine life.

"I love you too. I love you, Ikuto."

It was Ikuto's turn to look shocked. She could see tears welling behind his eyes at having his confession accepted, and she lifted a finger and rubbed the corner of his eyes. "I regret nothing, Ikuto." She told him. "Nothing at all."

A single tear managed to slide down Ikuto's cheek, but he cried no more afterwards. He reframed, his arms lifting Amu into his lap, where she rested her head against his chest. It was still dark outside, but the hints of a dawn were breaking on the horizon. They fell asleep against eachother, each finally finding peace.

--

Sorry it's short, but I think this is my favorite chapter yet! :D And as far as I can see, proofreading, there's no grammar mistakes! Hope you enjoyed! Please review!


	8. 30 Minutes Of Farewells

**Author's Note: **Sorry this took SO long guys. As a result, I'll be writing two chapters this week and uploading them as a way of compensation. :) I'm not sure, probably two, but if I get the time and my hands aren't killing me by then, I'll do three. I got back from my friend's on the 28th, but I've been feeling sick for a while now, and still am, so I don't feel like doing such a draining task as vidding. Instead, I chose to update and write some fics. . Just so you know this chapter isn't ALL sappy or emo. There ARE a few funny/happy snippets and an action scene at the end. I'd also like to send a huge **THANK YOU** to **Hikari no Kokoro **for pointing out that Amu would be 12-13 at this point, not eleven. Thank you again! Hope you enjoy! Read and review!

--

**CHAPTER 8:** **30 MINUTES OF FAREWELLS**

Amu woke early the next morning, the sun shining brightly through her window pane, though her mood wasn't as cheery and bright as a sunlight. With very little sleep and a hard day to get through, she would not be exaggerating if she said this day was going to go down as one of the worst in her entire life. She'd even go out on a limb and say Ikuto was also possessed by those same thoughts. As she had awoken, she saw Ikuto, already dressed, simply staring at the floor beneath him, his arms crossed and knees to his chest. He caught Amu's eye as she stared at him and turned away again, his magnificent blue eyes sad. Wordlessly, Amu slid next to him and laid her head on his shoulder, not bothering to care that her "Cool and Spicy" character would be undeniably offended by this. She and Ikuto stayed still for a long time into the morning, in the silence, their heartbeats in synchronisation as they sat next to each other.

It wasn't until some time later that Ikuto spoke to her.

"Amu.. would you like breakfast?" His voice was cracked and dry. Amu, still too emotional to speak, simply nodded, and let Ikuto grab her hand and drag her slowly into the kitchen. Luck, it seemed, was with them again, as Amu's parents had taken Ami out to a movie. Though they both knew too well that luck would only be on their side for awhile. It'd be a miracle if they both came out of this alive.

In silence, Ikuto made eggs and toast and handed a plate to Amu when he was finished before starting his own. Amu chewed slowly on her toast, realizing that it seemed that unlike most couples who begin a relationship, she and Ikuto were much too troubled to talk to each other. After all, now was not the time to talk as though you had all the time in a world to discover things about each other. For them, they only had a limited time, and that time would have to be spent together, but keeping themselves safe. There would be time to talk after the day's events were through, and although Amu was usually the optimistic thinker, she had no positive opinions today. The fear and shock of the last few days had crashed down upon her, and she restrained herself from thinking 'what if this had been a normal school year, and Ikuto and I had gotten together now?', because she knew it would only dampen her spirits deeper.

She noticed Ikuto was, like her, hardly eating. His plate was half-way full when he pushed it away. She swallowed a bit of egg and spoke to him, just to break this miserable, lingering silence. "You're not very hungry either, are you?"

"No." He sighed. "Which is seriously messed up because I'm sure you can guess how my appetite really is."

Amu suppressed a smile. "I'm sure you eat food like it's going out of style or something."

"Hey," Ikuto then began grinning, something Amu did not expect at all on his face today but was not complaining about seeing, and joked, "a man's got to eat, right? And you, when you become my wife, will you please make large dinners? I always dreamed of having a good dinner after coming home from a real job and spending time with my lovely wife and our kids --"

Amu choked on a bit of egg, her cheeks a beet red. She forced herself to swallow loudly and at her stunned and embarrassed expression, Ikuto began laughing, and that only pissed her off. "Ikuto?! What? _Kids_?! Who said I wanted to have _babies with _--"

"Oh, come on, Amu!" Ikuto faked a pout, and not very convincingly. "I can _soo _see you want to have little Hinamori-san's with me, don't you?"

Amu turned her head, arms folded. "_T-that_! H-have _babies_ _w-with _--? D-do _THAT_? _W-with_--!" She was beside herself in realizing the truth of that statement.

Ikuto was doubled over the table in laughter. "A-Amu you are too f-funny! Honestly, what did you THINK you had to do to create a baby? Unless you'd rather us just do this instead." Ikuto purred naughtily and before Amu could protest, leaned forward and kissed her. Amu found her anger and frustration ebbing away and slowly returned the kiss, losing her troubles inside of it for the moment. She thought of the future she could have had, she and Ikuto, happily married, with a little boy and girl or two, a happy family. That thought only made her saddened, however, at knowing it was something she could never have, and she broke the kiss hurriedly, leaving her desire to taste him unfulfilled and Ikuto looking confused.

"Amu?" He asked, with a look that plainly asked if he'd done something wrong. That cute ass look did nothing to help matters.

"That dream.. that vision.. us, together.. with kids.. you know.. it'll never come true, and not because I don't want it." She looked into his eyes, tears dripping down her cheeks, tinged still with a pink blush. "We're getting that one chance at happiness ripped away from us, and I can't stand knowing that something that is so desperately in reach is actually nothing more than a wild fantasy."

Ikuto shook his head, and wiped away her tears with a slender finger. "If we come out of this alive, we can still have that, Amu, if you still want me after all of this is over."

It was Amu's turn to be confused. "Huh? Ikuto, of course I'll still want --"

But Ikuto cut her off by placing his finger to her lips. "No. Listen, Amu. This is my final request to you. If you change your mind, and decide you want Tadase instead... will you please not do it.. until after Easter's stopped hunting us?"

Amu could only stare at him, hurt in her eyes. "Ikuto.. by going away with you.. is my decision that I want you and not him. This, all that we've done already, and gone through together, it's only brought us closer, and I've made my choice. My love for Tadase.. was simply an infatuation and that's all. True love is a supernatural existence coexisting to bring two people who are meant to be together, together. I believe.. that's the case with us. The key.. and the lock.. form a pair with each other. The key opens the lock. The key will open the lock.. to my heart." She said slowly, realizing it just as she said it.

Ikuto kept his eyes on her. "I've thought about that since the first time I met you. I thought, 'why did that girl have the lock and I the key'? I wondered if fate had some plans for us rather than us being enemies. Like.. it didn't have to be that way. The more I found about you, hung around you, got to know you.. I realized that you were the exact opposite from me, and while I could only show negative outlooks, you are radiant with positiveness. You made me believe that there was something still fighting for in this world. Even now, I believe in the light inside you, Amu." He said seriously.

Amu wiped away the tears that had renewed. "I don't think you spew negative energy; I think you're capable of positive as well as I can give. There's light inside of you, Ikuto, a happiness that deserves to shine."

Ikuto sighed. "Maybe my light isn't so bright, though, because I'm the happiest whenever I'm with you. But perhaps.. that light isn't enough to make me stronger, or a positive thinker. Maybe my darkness and the uncertainty of myself is stronger than the light I yield?"

Amu shook her head. "It's only darkest before the dawn, Ikuto. The dawn is coming." (A/N: Yay for a The Dark Knight quote! Thanks, Harvey Dent! Too bad you have nothing on The Joker! ;) LOL.)

Ikuto smiled slightly. "Well, 'the dawn' has just turned into 'early morning', so my little angel should finish eating and go upstairs to get dressed so we can.. get out of here.. and no, I won't look. Not that you have anything to look at quite yet." He winked teasingly.

Offended, Amu huffed, her cheeks growing beet red and swelling with anger as she snapped, "Oh, fuck you, Ikuto."

Ikuto raised his eyebrows playfully. "Would you like to?"

Giving a frustrated yell, Amu stormed out of her chair and walked quickly and angrily, yet cutely past Ikuto and up the stairs, ignoring Ikuto as he began laughing his ass off at her. "Oh, go to hell, you damned perverted cat!" She reached her bedroom and slammed the door shut, fuming, still in hearing range of Ikuto's crazy laughter.

--

A few hours after Amu had dressed and she and Ikuto discussed times they would meet as well as the rendezvous point, Amu was left alone in the house, feeling more nervous and scared than she'd ever felt in her life. She fought against the tears in her eyes knowing she'd have to say goodbye to her parents in just a few minutes when they arrived home. She considered just leaving a note, but knew that would only leave her feeling worse than she did and only worry her parents further. She didn't know what she was going to say; what could she say? But she knew she had no other choice. She had to break off things with her parents and sister, and that meant not telling them where she was; she'd find a way to contact them later, when she and Ikuto were safe and in hiding, wherever it was, and she had ensured Easter would not hurt her family.

She barely heard her parents entering the house and stiffened as they addressed her in cheerful voices, going on about Ami's day.

"Mom, Dad. Please, I have to talk to you." She cut across them, stunning them momentarily, her eyes shut tight and body shaking as she got to her feet. "This is going to come as a shock, and I know you're going to try and stop me, but please don't."

"Amu." Her dad's tone was timid and nervous. "What's going on?"

"I have to leave for awhile." Amu explained carefully. "As in, a few weeks or so."

Her mom blinked in confusion. "Amu, honey, you've got school and..."

"I'm sorry, but this just came up and I couldn't say no. I've been assigned by Easter corporation to go on a expedition with them." The lie came through her teeth, and she fought against the hurt knowing that she'd just lied to her parents. But she knew, even with the amount of courage she had, that she would not be able to tell them that she was leaving and possibly forever. This way, if something happened to her Easter themselves could be held responsible in her parents' eyes, instead of being responsible expect to no one's knowledge. This lie was for the best.

"An expedition?" Her father asked blankly. "You mean like a cruise but with work involved?"

"Something like that." Amu lied again. "It sure will have work involved." That part wasn't unnecessarily a lie.

"Well.." Her father glanced at her mother, as if asking for approval. Amu's mother looked at her.

"Will you have a chaperone with you? If not, I'd be glad to --"

"Yeah. My friend who works for Easter, Ikuto, will be coming with me." This wasn't exactly a lie, either.

"Oh okay." Her mother breathed a sigh of relief. "And he's that boy who was here a week or two ago with you? The one who had no place to stay?"

"That's him." Amu nodded.

"I rather liked that fellow!" Her dad exclaimed. "He was very witty and playful!"

_Gee, dad, if you like that, wait until you see his perverted side, _Amu thought sarcastically.

"Well," He continued, "I suppose it's fine. As long as you're able to make up your school work when you come back and if this Ikuta guy comes with you."

"It's _Ikuto_, Dad." Amu smiled in correction. "And yes, I can make it up."

"Oh... right." He blushed in embarrassment. " I guess it's fine, then."

"Thank you so much." Amu, for once, let her other side show to her parents, provoking shocked expressions from them. _Wow, maybe I should do this more often, then they wouldn't be standing there looking like a bunch of babbling idiots, _Amu thought sourly, but she sure was thankful they weren't as uptight as she thought they'd be, and she was glad, for once, that she'd lied to them. It was this one lie that would save their lives.

--

"I don't know when I'll be back." Ikuto was sitting cross-legged at an outside dinner booth, his sister Utau sitting across from him, her chocolate shake going untouched. "Or if I'll be back."

It probably was a good thing she wasn't drinking it right now, otherwise she would have probably spit it out and gotten it all over his clothes. Nevertheless, she had a similar reaction.

"W-what?!" She shrieked, practically throwing herself at him from across the table. "Ikuto, what are you.. saying..?"

"Easter has placed a death sentence on both me and Amu." Ikuto explained. "Right about now, she's explaining this to her parents, who she may never see again."

Utau looked as if she'd been slapped in the face. "Ikuto.. if mom finds out what our step-father is doing to you.."

Ikuto chuckled bitterly. "When has she ever cared what he'd done to us, Utau? She remains oblivious to our scenario's, and while she gets to see you all the time, I only see her briefly. When I do see her, she's always with_ him_.. I don't think she knows what's going on with us, and as long as he keeps it from mom, she'll never know."

"Yeah.." Utau took a sip of her drink, eyes saddened. When she was finished, she spoke again. "But Ikuto.. this may be the last time I ever see you. I don't know if I can handle that."

"You can," Ikuto disagreed. "You're strong, Utau. And besides.. who said I was going to let Easter kill me without a fight?" He managed a comforting smile at his younger sister. "This is my chance to finally break free of those bastards even without the Embryo, although I'm sure somewhere along the way, Amu and I will find it."

Utau nodded slightly, managing a very small smile. "Please promise to come back, Ikuto."

"I promise." Ikuto agreed. "And when I do, just this once.. you can hug me all you want. No kissing, though."

Utau's eyes lit up, and she agreed easily, although she pouted slightly at the "No kissing" bit. "Can I give you a hug now? As a goodbye?"

Any other time, Ikuto would not have agreed to this, but this could be the very last time he ever saw his sister again. "Yeah. Just a quick one, though. I've got to go get Amu so we can get out of here and into hiding."

Utau jumped up and wrapped her arms around him, her head buried in his chest. "Please take care, Ikuto." She whispered. Ikuto patted her back, taking on the role of the comforting older brother. "I will. You take care too, Utau. Do not lose faith in your songs. Keep singing, and you can get through anything."

She pulled away then, and said nothing. Ikuto nodded at her in farewell and turned away from her and headed down the main road, not looking back as he went to catch up with Amu. He wondered if this heartbreaking feeling within him.. was also within Amu. For the first time in years, he felt the need to cry. An actual heart-felt cry, desperate to escape him. But he could not cry. If Amu could be so strong to face this, why couldn't he? He knew her goodbyes would be much more heart-wrenching, ten times the amount of his.. and he could only imagine how he would find Amu when he went to claim her.

--

Amu was waiting outside patiently with her parents, slumping a small back full of clothes and some food, knowing she and Ikuto would need it. She knew her chickening out of telling her parents what was going on was cowardly, and probably showed her weakness was stronger than her bravery, but this was something she knew she would not be able to bear. Knowing death could come at any minute soon.. how did you tell yourself that, much less your parents? You couldn't; there was a limit on the strength and bravery of a human being, on what the heart could endure before breaking.

"Yo."

Amu looked up, coming out of her thoughts, to see Ikuto striding towards her. He stopped in front of her and looked towards her parents.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Hinamori."

"Good afternoon, Ikuto-kun." Amu's mother greeted, and her father nodded at him. Amu gave her parents a quick hug before joining Ikuto's side who addressed them again.

"I promise, with my life, to make sure nothing happens to your daughter while I am with her." He said seriously.

"Thank you, Ikuto. We believe you and Amu will be okay. It isn't like you're being hunted by an evil organization or anything. And you're a strong boy, I'm sure you could take on any one who attempted to hurt Amu-chan."

"Yes." Ikuto murmured, glancing down quickly at Amu with a questioning look that Amu jerked her head at, indicating she'd tell him later. Ikuto dropped it after that. "Well, we really should be going. We'll call you when we get some where suitable."

"Thank you." Amu's mother said again.

Amu, without thinking, rushed forward and embraced her parents again, this time quite unable to control tears and cried slightly into her mom's chest.

"Amu-chan, what's wrong? It's not like you're going away forever!" Her mom laughed, and Amu managed a fake laugh in response as she pulled away from her and hugged her father for a moment before pulling away and heading back to Ikuto.

"Bye, Mama. Papa." She raised her hand in farewell and as her parents waved good bye, and and Ikuto turned and began heading away from them. Amu looked back one final time, the tears coming faster and more rapidly before she turned back and looked ahead. Ikuto watched her.

"Amu... are you okay?"

She shook her head, her small body shaking as she walked. "No. Ikuto, I don't think I'm going to be okay. I can b-barely stand this.. i-it was too hard t-to tell them, I.. I can't remain strong even now..." She looked as if she were about to collapse she was shaking so badly, the cries changing to sobs, her pace slowing as she began to stand still while the tears consumed her.

"Oh, Amu.." Ikuto whispered gently, sympathetically, and pulled her into a hug encouraging her to let it out while she still could. They stood there for a few moments, lost in grief, until a cold, appraising voice sounded behind them, making them turn.

"Aw, how cute."

Yukari Sanjou was standing in front of them, Easter guards around them. Amu gasped in fright and Ikuto held her more securely behind him.

"Sanjou-san. Wow, you look like an old lady now with all the wrinkles. Getting stressed, are you?" Ikuto laughed.

Yukari's face went red. "You... you little brat, you think this is funny? As if this is some kind of game? You really are a stupid, idiotic child if you believe that."

Ikuto glared. "I know this is not a game, Sanjou-san. In fact, I think I know it more than you do. I don't think of this as a added bonus to my pay check, getting rid of two kids who don't agree with my that company's views on things. Utau left you, and now it's my turn. Destinies are ours to create, they're not predetermined, and I will make damn sure that I live my life, free of Easter."

Sanjou smirked, and cocked her head to the side to get a better view of Amu. "Perhaps _you_, if you decide to come back with us and give yourself to us as our puppet, but that little girl over there won't have a life to live, I assure you of that, Ikuto." She faced her armed men behind her. "Kill the girl first, then take the Humpty Lock from her."

Ikuto now threw himself in front of Amu as the men prepared to shoot. "Over my dead body will you get Amu or the Humpty Lock." He snarled. "Basically, in case you didn't get that, you have to go through me to get to her."

Yukari shrugged. "Your choice, then. I was offering you a peace-offering, but your spoiled brat attitude ruined it. No matter. I've hated you since the moment I laid eyes on you, so if you're dead it won't make any difference to me. Men," She addressed the guards again. "Kill them."

"Amu!" Ikuto grabbed Amu out of the way just as the sound of twenty gunshots sounded around them. Ikuto, with Amu in his arms, jumped high into the air, missing the bullets by a millimeter. They began firing again, Ikuto dodging time after time, but the pace of the fires were coming faster, and he knew he wouldn't be able to dodge for long.

"Yoru, we need to chara transform, now!" He commanded, and Yoru obeyed immediately, chara transforming into Black Lynx. Another gun shot missed Amu just barely, and she whimpered in fright as Ikuto, able to get away properly now, soared high into the air and out of sight.

"Phew." Amu breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Ikuto. That was close.."

"Are you okay, Amu? I saw a bullet just barely miss you." His voice barely concealed his fear.

"Yeah, I'm fine. We're just lucky we got away all right. Though, eventually, our luck is going to.." Amu trailed of. Ikuto stayed silent, concentrating on getting them safely out of the way of Easter, knowing, like Amu, that luck only lasted for a short time before it ran out all together.


	9. 30 Minutes Of Running

**Author's Note: **Hello, everyone. Gomen about the "two-chapter" update thing.. I promise to do it this weekend instead. XD Anyway, plenty of updates before I start the chapter; One, I've decided to make this fic shorter. 30 Chapters is simply too much and I don't want it just Ikuto and Amu sitting around doing nothing in hiding. A few chapters, but that's pretty much it. So, this fic will now be approximately 24 chapters or so. Maybe shorter, maybe an extra. I'm currently piecing in my head and going over the plot points I intended so I can make sure it all fits in accordingly. Two, I'm seriously sick with a bad cold, which explains why I haven't updated. I've had it for nearly a week now and am most likely going to have it for another, but while I got the strength, I wanted to update now. Three, I've decided to also take out the lyrics in every chapter. I found it got annoying after awhile and I don't want this to suddenly become a song-fic. So, those are gone and will be taken out when I edit the chapters. That's pretty much it.

Thank you, and hope you enjoy the chapter!

--

**CHAPTER 9: 30 MINUTES OF RUNNING**

Amu and Ikuto walked quickly through the streets of downtown, stopping only at red lights and to look back occasionally. So far, there was no sign of Easter's henchmen or Yukari Sanjou, and for right now, it was likely to remain that way. Even so, there was an aura of fear. The streets were dead silent, and although it was still early, the subdued area wasn't really helping Amu's hay-wired nerves. Her body was still shaking like an aftershock after an earthquake, tremors running down her small form. Ikuto wrapped his arms securely around her shoulder's, his hand trailing up to caress her face as they walked. She relaxed somewhat, his silent comfort helping her more than words could right now. She knew that words wouldn't really be effective with his fear, either. Fear she knew he had, yet fear he tried to repress so casually.

Amu glanced up at him to look at his face, and saw that he was staring straight ahead, eyes narrowed in determination. But there was fear. A lot of fear. He was afraid, like her. Like her, he didn't know if they would make it through this alive. She reached out for his hand and gingerly rubbed it before taking it in her own. Ikuto didn't look down at her, but his eyes softened, and Amu managed herself a small smile of reassurance as they stopped at yet another red light.

She didn't question where they were going; the details could wait. It didn't matter where they went, as long as they got themselves away from Easter's watchful eyes and could breathe while they still had the chance. Their time was running out, and every little second they had left should not be taken for granted.

The eleven-year-old pink-haired girl did not know the light had turned Green until Ikuto tugged her gently to pull her out of her thoughts and they began heading farther away from their very lives here, where they had lived. Ran, Miki and Su were inside Amu's bag, their small heads peering out sadly at Amu. She knew that they knew what was going on, knew exactly how she was feeling, and for once, they did not pretend to be happy or encourage Amu that things would be okay. Because like she and Ikuto, they didn't know either. Ran's pom-pom's were held delicately at her sides, her head down to her chest. Miki was drawing in her sketchbook like always, but her desire to draw seemed to have dispersed, and she gave up easily, sighing and putting it away. Suu was sitting with her knees to her chest farther into the bag, her back to Amu's eyes.

The impact of the fear of Easter had taken a definate effect on them too.

"Hey, Ikuto?" Amu broke the silence, unable to stand it any more.

"Hmm?" Ikuto didn't look at her.

She held his hand slightly tighter. "Where are we going, exactly?"

"The train station," He answered her, finally lowering his head to gaze at her. "I've got quite a load of money on me from Utau, so we'll be able to take a train out of the city. Once we are, they'll have a harder time trying to find us. I also want to make sure we're not in one place for too long and move around a bit to confuse them. It'll help us survive longer, and it might be our only chance."

Amu nodded slowly, and returned to her thoughts. About now, she'd be heading out to go to school if it were a school day. She allowed herself a glance back, catching the school's silhouette in the distance. How she wished she could have told Tadase and the others. How she wished she could speak to Naheshiko again, one last time, now that they were both gone away. And while Nadeshiko would return, she most likely would not. And Kairi... he'd come back to her only to never find her. Rima.. she and Rima had started to become so close, and now she would never get to learn more about her. Yaya, Kukai.. she could only imagine their faces realizing she was not coming back. And Tadase..

Tadase, her first true love; Or rather, first infatuation. She never loved him like she loved Ikuto, but... even so, the thought of never seeing him again hurt her. To never again see his blond hair and maroon-colored eyes... to never hear his evil laugh when called "Prince"... every little memory was valuable and dear to her, and how she wished she had not taken a single moment for granted.

The tears were impossible to hold back yet again as these thoughts overwhelmed her. They trickled rapidly down her cheeks and onto her shirt collar. She stopped, unable to walk any more. Ikuto stopped with her and kneeled down in front of her when he realized she was crying.

"Oh, Amu.." He whispered miserably. Amu used her sleeve to try and stop the tears, but it was no avail.

"I-I'm sorry," She choked. "I know I must seem like such a little kid to you, Ikuto, b-but... "

"Hey, hey," Ikuto cut her off gently, running the back of his hand across her right cheek. "It's not a weakness to cry, I don't see you as a baby or a vulnerable little girl just because you're showing you're scared. Even the strongest people let their barriers break sometimes.."

Amu sniffled. "But why.. why don't you, Ikuto? Aren't you scared, too?"

He gazed deeply into her golden irises. "Yes. I am scared. I just have a stronger barrier from all of the practice and experience. I used to cry when I was little. It just feels like I can't possibly cry any more than I did years ago."

Amu's eyes widened through the tears. He was finally opening up to her. "And.. why did you cry when you were younger, Ikuto? What happened?"

Ikuto's eyes narrowed slightly and for a moment Amu thought he was angry at her. "My mother... betrayed me, Amu. I'll be able to tell you what happened eventually, but not now. Not today. When I'm able to face the truth, I'll be able to tell you."

Amu wanted to know more, and wanted to get him to tell her now, but knew not to test him or his heart. He'd tell her when he was ready. And she believed he would. Nodding, she let Ikuto lead her along and looked up in time to see them approaching the station. Once there, they stopped.

"Do you have your friends' phone numbers, Amu?" Ikuto asked suddenly.

Amu blinked at him. "Y-yeah. I.. I brought them along with me in my bag. Why?"

Ikuto nodded his head and Amu turned around to see what he was inclining his head at, and saw a telephone booth a foot from her. Amu's eyes widened as she realized what Ikuto was saying. "C-call them? But.. should I tell them?"

"Yeah," Ikuto muttered. "They need to know. And when you call Tadase.. I need to tell him something."

Amu's golden spheres grew rounder as they widened further for a split second before narrowing and she crossed her arms. "Ikuto, this is no time to gloat.."

He smirked. "I wasn't going to." He grew a frown again. "I wanted to ask a request of him, to watch out for my sister for me."

"...Ohh.." Amu's eyes sparkled with tears. "Utau.. she's probably going to be worried sick.."

"She'll be fine." Ikuto reassured. "After all, she's dating that one friend of your's, now. What's his name.. Kukai.."

"What?" Amu asked stupidly. "Kukai and Utau? Dating? Wha..."

Ikuto laughed, and Amu nearly dropped her mouth open at how it sounded. So gentle... so genuine.. so pure. "That was my reaction too."

With difficulty, she rearranged her features into a smile, making a vow to herself that she would make sure Ikuto could laugh like that again. She would make it happen.

"I'll call them." She decided. "It's best they know, anyway."

She turned to the phone where Ikuto had indicated and rummaged in her pockets for the little change she had. Depositing it, her fingers fumbled as she called Rima, the one who was most likely to be home right about now. She nearly sighed in relief when Rima picked up. "Hey, Rima, it's Amu."

"Hi, Amu." Rima sounded somewhat cheerful. "Is everything okay?"

"Not quite." No, not at all. Not quite was a tame way of putting it. "Listen.. Easter's... put a death sentence on both me and Ikuto head's, the boy who works for them. We had to leave. I don't know if I'll be coming home, but I wanted to let you know that I'll call you as soon as I can once we get into hiding."

"Easter's after you and Ikuto?" Rima sounded scared. That only made this worse. "But you shouldn't have left! We could've helped you!"

Amu closed her eyes. "I'm sorry, Rima, but the Guardians would be unable to help me in this situation, it would only get you guys killed. See.. they want the Humpty Lock, basically me, and not you guys. As long as you're out of their way they won't hurt you. It's me and Ikuto they want."

"But doesn't he work for them? He's our enemy, isn't he?"

"No," Amu said defiantly. "He's not our enemy. He never was. Easter's been using him from the beginning to get the Embryo, and when he opposed them, they decided to kill him. And since we're the holders of the lock and key, they plan to take me out with him."

"Amu.." Rima's voice was breaking on the other end, something Amu didn't like to hear. Rima, who acted so tough and collected, reduced to tears? It felt like the world was ending. If it was this tough with Rima, she hated to know how hard it would be to tell Tadase and the others. And she didn't think she would be able to handle telling them...

"Rima, I promise.. if there's any way of coming back, I definately will. For now, I've got to do things this way. It might be the only way I can stay alive. Please understand. Please don't cry. Promise me that you'll tell the others for me, and promise me that you and the Guardians won't do anything reckless like try to find me or help me, okay? I don't want anyone else in this mess."

"I promise." Rima answered slowly. "You better call, though, Amu, otherwise, I might not be able to stand sitting here and doing nothing. I'm going to go call the others and meet them so I can tell them now."

"Hold on," Amu replied, "Don't call Tadase. I'm going to call him myself. Please tell Kukai, Yaya, Nadeshiko -- when she comes back -- and Kairi if you see him again about it though. Maybe Nikaidou-sensei, too. My parents don't know anything about it. They think I've gone on some cruise or something, and I hope it stays that way."

"I'll try to keep it like that." Rima reassured. "Thank you for telling me, Amu. Be safe.. and call soon, okay?" Her voice cracked again.

"I will. I promise. You take care, too."

"Ikuto, too." Rima included. "If he's with you, I may not know him directly, but I know how he is around you. He'd give his life to save you."

Amu sighed. "I know."

"Good bye, Amu.."

"'Bye, Rima.."

She hung up, hands shaking as she repressed the emotion. She could not break down again. Not yet. She had to be strong, just like she'd been strong when she'd told her parents the lie, that very last lie. She needed the courage to do this again. One last time.

She dialed Tadase's number, and looked back at Ikuto, motioning him to come over. He obeyed at once, knowing it was Tadase she was calling now. He answered almost immediately.

"Hello?"

"Tadase-kun.." Amu's voice was somewhat strangled.

"Hey, Hinamori-san! How are you doing?"

"N-not good," She said truthfully. "Tadase.. we have something to tell you.."

She could practically see Tadase's confused look in her head. "We?"

"Ikuto.. is here with me. And before you start yelling and ranting and what not, please hear me about and know I'm telling the truth. Please don't interrupt until I'm finished. I can only make this quick, but... Easter is after me. As in, out to kill me. They got a death sentence on Ikuto as well, and we had to leave. We're heading for somewhere out of Tokyo, but I don't know where yet. I promise to call you once we're in the clear and update you from there. The others already know, and I told my parents a lie that they bought. Please don't try to find me or get involved, Tadase-kun. I don't want anyone else involved."

"... I see.. this is something you need to do on your own.."

"Yes." She breathed a sigh of relief, happy he understood.

".. But it's something you can't take on your own."

"I have Ikuto with me," She reminded him. "And no matter how you feel about him, you know that he'll protect me with his life. He's proved that already."

Tadase said nothing.

"And.. actually.. he has something he would like to say to you."

"All right, put him on."

Amu handed the phone to Ikuto who smiled briefly at her before turning serious. "Hello, Tadase.." Amu was surprised to hear no mocking or sneer in his voice that he always had when speaking to Tadase. It sounded.. fond.

"Yeah, it's a real threat." Ikuto was saying. "They've attacked us twice already, and will probably try to get at us more. That's why we're moving quickly, so I can only talk for a few minutes. I know our relationship hasn't been good lately.. and I know you hate my guts more than anyone, but.. I'd like to ask a favor of you... a favor that's not coming from your enemy, but from your friend."

Amu wished she had a three-way line so she could hear what Tadase was saying in response to this. The fact that Ikuto wasn't smirking or showing any kind of amusement or self-righteousness made her think Tadase was not getting angry at him.

"I want you to keep an eye on Utau for me. It hasn't been past Easter to attack those that I care about, and I don't want anything happening to my sister."

Amu gasped slightly. So this was why.. Easter could come after Utau... make her suffer for no reason. Amu's breath hitched.

"Thank you, Tadase. I appreciate it. I'll let Amu finish talking to you before we go. And.. goodbye. Take care."

Ikuto handed the phone a little too quickly back to Amu before she could regroup and when she spoke again her voice was somewhat breathless sounding. "T-thank you, Tadase-kun."

"You're welcome, Hinamori-san. Please be careful and call any and every chance you get whether it's me, Utau, or any of the other Guardians. We'll contact each other and keep up on you."

Amu smiled. "I'll be fine. I will be okay."

"I know you will. Ikuto's with you." Tadase whispered. "And.. tell him.. to be safe, too. I can't wait for the day the both of you come back home where you belong."

Damn the tears again. Amu swallowed and choked them back, nodding her head. "Yeah. We'll come home soon."

"Good bye, Amu-chan."

"G-g-good bye!" Amu stammered, shocked that Tadase had said her first name. Before she could regroup, the call had ended, and she hung the phone back onto it's place with an almost hollow feeling inside. She turned back to Ikuto, who was looking around the station alertly.

"Tadase says to be careful." Amu told him. Ikuto nodded, and gently seized her hand, walking quickly with her to the ticket booth.

"We need to get out of here," Ikuto whispered sternly to her.

"Why?" Amu's heart quickened in fear. "Is Easter..?"

"I saw two of the employees that know me quite well heading out of that McDonald's on the other side. They'll know all about the death threat on me and will probably call for the guards if they see us. Once we board the train, we'll be fine." He explained. He turned his attention to the woman who was watching him expectantly.

"Two tickets for Kyoto." He answered simply. The woman nodded and pulled out two, handing one to each of them.

"Enjoy your ride." She responded before grabbing a bag of chips and opened them. Amu and Ikuto went into the tunnel ahead and swiped their tickets before heading onto the platform. A few people stared at them as they waited for their train, and Amu knew this scene must look strange, a twelve-year-old girl hanging out with a seventeen-year-old boy. Ikuto, however, seemed to care less about these stares and kept throwing looks around the station every so often. Amu knew it was to make sure they weren't being followed.

"Train's coming." He said suddenly. Amu looked up at him.

"Huh? I can't hear it."

"I do."

"How the hell can you hear a train if I can't?" Amu asked accusingly.

"I'm a cat, remember? My senses are sharper than your's."

"But you're not chara changed or transformed!"

"I don't need to be," Ikuto noted seriously. "The transformation abilities have been with me so long they mingled with my real ones. Haven't you always wondered why I could jump down from high places and not even get a sratch?"

"Yeah.." Amu whispered quietly and trailed off. She could hear and see the train coming now, but wasn't sure if it was the one they needed to board.

"It's ours," Ikuto said, as if he had read her mind. Amu stared at him, eyebrow raised.

"Don't tell me.. even your eye sight is like a cat's?"

He smirked as the train stopped directly in front of our platform and the doors opened. "Yeah." Rolling her eyes, she and the neko-boy boarded the train and took a two-seater farther in the back. Amu got the window seat but Ikuto didn't seem to really car. His left hand was under his chin, eyes focused, deep in thought. Amu squirmed nervously next to him, realizing that this was the first time she and Ikuto would be alone for possibly months or years, without parental supervision or anyone to get between them. She could feel her face was hot and hoped Ikuto wouldn't look at her and see her most definitely blushing. As she looked around, she saw their car was very nearly empty save for a sleeping old man with an open newspaper on his chest. For something to do, she drew her back around to her waist and peered inside to find her three charas sound asleep. Smiling slightly, she looked back at Ikuto.

"Ne, Ikuto?"

He turned his head half-way towards her, but didn't respond, so she continued. "Back at the station.. when you talked to Tadase... what all did you talk about?" She asked curiously.

"He said he'd keep an eye on Utau for me, and call me if something were to happen to her." He said slowly.

Amu raised her knees to her chest, still staring at him. "Is something likely to happen to your sister?"

"Not really." Ikuto said. "But with Easter, I don't like to take any chances. They might try and get her alone so they can question her. Sanjou will most likely do that. But I doubt they'll actually hurt her. They will try to persuade her to join them again, if anything. I was their only hope left for the Embryo, and now that I'm gone, they need more help."

"The Embryo.." Amu whispered, and Ikuto looked at her with inquiring eyes. "Why.. why does this Gozen want the Embryo for, anyway? What terrible things does he want to do with it?"

Ikuto looked at her for a moment longer before sighing and turning his head slightly again, his hand still beneath his chin. "I don't know. There are many things he could do with it. He's never come out and told any of us, and I rarely see him. But I do know that what ever it is won't be good. But I've had a theory. I think he wants to permanently find a way to keep children from getting Shugo Chara's all together. To stop their existence."

Amu gasped. "You.. you don't really think he could do something like that..? Destroy our.. our would-be-selves?"

"Who knows.." Ikuto said quietly. "He's been looking more and more evil lately, and he's been much meaner too. He's the one who agreed with the director to put this sentence on us. But it was mainly the director who did that."

"Director?" Amu asked. "And who's the director?"

Ikuto's eyes hardened, his hand under his chin forming into a fist, teeth clenched. Amu knew she had pressed on the wrong topic and knew that who ever this director was, he had a huge effect on Ikuto. There was silence for a few moments as she struggled to find a way to calm the atmosphere. "Um.. remember when.. when you bought that stuff for me after ruining the tart?"

Ikuto smirked, obviously remembering the things after that part. "Yeah. The time when I found your weakness."

Amu blushed and crossed her arms, staring up at the train ceiling. "Eh, um.. I asked you.. what your wish was, then, but... you couldn't tell me.. and I was.. wondering.. if... you.."

Her question faltered, but Ikuto reached over seized her chin with his thumb, tenderly and romantically, so she turned her face towards him. His eyes were intense. "You.. you really want to know, _Amu_?"

The way he'd said her name was so seductive, Amu found herself blushing like hell. "Uh, um... y-yes, Ikuto. I really... want to know.."

He continued to stare at her with intense, seductive eyes, and he leaned forward into her. "I want the Embryo.. to fulfill my one and only wish.." He leaned in closer to her, so that their faces were nearly a centimeter apart, lips very close together. His hot breath hit her cheeks. Amu waited, hardly daring to breathe. "My only wish... which is to finally be free of that hell that is Easter."

Amu's eyes shined with re-provoked tears. "Ikuto.."

His lips planted against hers softly, a warm, tender kiss. He licked her bottom lip and Amu opened her mouth slightly to allow him entrance, where he grazed her inner wall slowly and purposefully before running his tongue along her bottom teeth and exiting, kissing her lips again before pulling away. "That is my one true wish."

Amu moved closer to him so that she was nearly in his lap, their faces close together again. "I'll make sure it happens, Ikuto. I'll be the one to free you from Easter. I promise."

He smiled, a smile so pure and loving that again it took Amu's breath away. Right now, she was peaceful in seeing that smile, a smile she had waited to see upon his face for the longest times. The dark times were near -- they were already here -- but the smallest light that was a time like this gave her hope, the hope that she could achieve both her dreams and Ikuto's, fulfill the promise between them. That bond between them could make her go on, and it was enough.

"I love you," Amu whispered, laying her head against his chest. "I promise.. I'll make your wish come true.."

Ikuto kissed the top of her head, letting her in his lap. "I love you, too, Amu. I believe in you."

Belief was all that they had now. Hope.

--

Oww my hands.. LMAO! Okay, there will be another chapter tomorrow. :) Hope you enjoyed, and R&R!


	10. 30 Minutes Of Hiding

**Author's Note: **As promised, another chapter. :) Hope you enjoy! Pretty short chapter, and I know, the next chapter will be around the same legnth, but I'm leading this for the chapter after the next one, for one of the highest points in this fic, so you'll get two times the amount of this and the next chapter put together. :) My gift to you guys! XD Next chapter should be up either later (I'm writing it now) or later in the day/evening of tomorrow. And the weekend will have another one or two chapters. Yeah.. my inspiration for this fic just went nuts. LOL.

**WARNING: **Small spoilers for chapter 33 of the manga about the Founding King.

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**CHAPTER 10: 30 MINUTES OF HIDING**

It had taken around two to three hours to get out of the city of Tokyo. The farther they got, the farther Amu saw a small bit of hope on the horizon. It had been smart of Ikuto take take her with him out of their home town -- as heartwrenching as it had been to leave -- and away from Easter's eyes. If things went okay from here, it would be a long time before Easter could track them down. They could be cautious, but they could have some fun as well. That made this run away and hide situation a litle more endurable in Amu's eyes.

She looked up at Ikuto, watching him silently. Throughout the whole ride, they'd hardly said a word to each other. Yet, their presence, by each other's side, was enough. Words didn't need to be said when Ikuto was next to her, protecting her. Loving her. She cleared her throat, promting Ikuto to look at her. "Hey, Ikuto... now that we're out of the city... isn't there a less likeable chance that Easter will find us?"

Ikuto sighed quietly, and shifted in his seat so that he could face her directly. "There is.. a chance they won't be able to find us out here. But don't get too overconfident, Amu; these people are not to be taken lightly. They managed to track me down once before, and they will no doubt do it again. Easter has more capable uses of finding us than continuing to come after us. I think they're tracking us somehow, because those two people I saw who worked for Easter had guns on them, so I know they were keeping a eye out for us. They had to have some incentive that we were going to go to the train station."

Amu's stomach turned over. "But.. if that's true, shouldn't they be able to find us now?"

Ikuto shrugged. "They actually might be waiting for us to go out in to the open. Which is why once we get off, I'm going to chara-transform to get you to safety. Just to be safe."

"No, Ikuto." Amu said quickly. "You're still injured, aren't you? From the bullet --"

"I'm fine, Amu," Ikuto told her, his voice somewhat stern. "It's better to be safe than sorry, and I promised your parents that I'd protect you at all costs. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I let someone hurt you?" He smirked as Amu's face grew red at the word "boyfriend" and added, "Not a very good one, and I've already promised myself I would be the best for you."

"Ikuto." Amu's blush grew more pronounced and she looked away from him to the opposite window, catching her facial expression in the window's reflection and worked to rearrange it.

Ikuto was still smirking. "Did you like the way I said 'boyfriend', Amu?" He purred. Amu forced herself not to start blushing like hell at that cat-like reaction and instead crossed her arms and sputtered, "N-no!"

"Ha ha." Ikuto was chuckling. "You're so cute when you blush. I'll be the only one that will make you blush like that."

Amu crossed her arms, attempting to be stubborn, but started grinning instead. That didn't exactly help because Ikuto was still staring at her. Damn her and her freaking blush-ducts.

She was saved from being tormented by Ikuto's perverted grin when he suddenly straightened up in his seat and stood abruptly. "We're here, Amu. Grab a hold of me."

Wasting no time, Amu got to her feet and slung her bag over her shoulder just as Ikuto had done his violin. The train stopped at the platform and the door opened allowing them exit. Amu gripped Ikuto's arm tightly, looking around wildly just like Ikuto was. Her legs were trembling as she expected to be attacked at any second. They walked quickly just as they had done at the station to leave, and Ikuto bent down slightly and whispered in Amu's ear. "They're not here."

Amu breathed a sigh of relief and loosened her hold somewhat on Ikuto. "So.. where do we go from here?"

"There's a little... I'd like to say 'hiding place' where Tadase and I used to play as kids just down the road from here. I'd call it a tree house, but it isn't in a tree, exactly. It's more like a really small cabin of sorts."

"Oh." Amu nodded. "And your parents took you guys here?"

"Well, his parents did." Ikuto admitted. "Utau and I lived with Tadase's family for quite some time because my mother had fallen deathly ill. So on weekends, his parents took us here because there's a really cool water park around here and Tadase's grandmother used to live here. When we did come, we found that little play house and we made sure that every time we came we hung out in there." Ikuto smiled slightly, remembering. "We were supposed to go the day that my mom got better, but..." He trailed off.

Amu, who had been watching him with mesmerizing eyes, blinked. "But what?"

Ikuto hesitated, obviously unsure if he wanted to tell her. "But I left. For good. I didn't come back, and Tadase came home to find his grandmother passed out and his dog, Betty, dead. Of course.. I was to blame for it. That's what started our bad relationship." He stopped, deciding he shouldn't say more.

Amu smiled slighly and grabbed Ikuto's hand, rubbing her thumb along it in a gentle caress. "You can tell me, Ikuto. We're not enemies anymore. I'm your friend.. and.." She blushed as she choked out the next word. "Girlfriend."

Ikuto smirked slightly. "Finally admit it, huh?" He frowned again, struggling to find words to continue. "I.. don't know why I up and left. To this day, I don't know why I did it. I just knew that I had to get away from that house... that life. I felt trapped, and I wanted to be free. That was when Yoru was born. Maybe I was just tired of not being able to fix my own destiny, and leaving seemed to be the only way I could try and achieve it. Then I met him.."

Amu's heart pounded. "Him?"

"The Founding King of the Guardians.. Tsukasa." Ikuto told her. "He took me in. He said it was to hide me from Easter's eyes for a while. And I... I didn't object. I stayed there, not knowing why I trusted this guy so much. I didn't even really like him. Yet, I told him everything. I didn't leave and go back to Easter or to my mother when she got better and took Utau with her. And she... she never came to search for me, so I.." He stopped again.

Amu could now sense the hurt that was inside of Ikuto's soul, all that he had to suffer throughout the years. And it was all from Easter. Easter was the blame for ruining Ikuto's life, just like they ruined Utau's, and the children who lost their dreams because of their desperate attempts to get the Embryo. All of this suffering, all of this pain.. was caused by Easter themselves, and they would only cause more heartache and pain in the future.

Amu squeezed Ikuto's hand in comfort. "This is why... I must stop them. I will free you, no matter what it takes. I won't let them hurt you anymore." She whispered. Ikuto returned the hold and they continued on until they had finally come through the end of the station.

"Is it up there?" Amu asked, pointing at a cabin-like house. It looked rather small from here.

"Yeah." Ikuto answered. "We should go before --"

"Before what?"

Amu's eyes widened at the sound of the voice and she and Ikuto turned around to meet Yukari Sanjou and her crew of ten of Easter's guards.

Ikuto smirked at the lack of gunmen. "What, running out of guards to keep track on us?"

Yukari did not seemed phased by his insult. "So, run for cover, have you? In another city, too. I really must compliment you, Ikuto, you're very smart. Still, not even that intellect will keep you safe from us. We've managed to track you ever since you left Tokyo, and yet you can't figure out how, can you?" She sneered.

Ikuto scoffed. "Believe me, I'll figure it out." He promised. "And we don't exactly have time for your pathetic attempts to kill us today. Yoru," He called quickly, and Yoru -- who had been sleeping on Ikuto's shoulder the whole time but had awoken as soon as they'd exited the train -- understood immediately, and allowed Ikuto to transform with him. But Sanjou shook her head.

"No, I don't think I'll be letting you get away that easy." She pulled out her hand gun and fired a shot at Ikuto, but he had already chara changed, rapidly dodging her shots before she could figure out where he would move. Amu stood there frozen, watching in fright, and Ikuto swooped down from the air in the fully transformed outfit of Black Lynx and knocked Sanjou to the ground with a hard kick to the face, making her release her hold on the gun. The Easter guards now held up their guns, looking around wildly for Ikuto, but he was too fast before them; before one could raise their gun and pull the trigger, he had already knocked out five of them.

Amu suddenly screamed in pain, distracting Ikuto momentarily. He looked down at her to see blood dripping from her right leg, just below the knee. She clutched it with two hands, crying in agony, and Ikuto knew that he couldn't afford to take out these guards with Amu injured. He upper-cutted two of them with his free right hand and switched his hold on Amu into that one so he could use his claw-bearing left. The two remaining prepared to shoot but Ikuto slashed at them and thundered ahead as they collapsed to the ground, not caring if they were alive or dead.

Ikuto flew with Amu in his arms, holding her tightly until they reached the cabin. "Amu?" He asked in a terrified voice. She didn't respond.

"Damn it!" Ikuto changed back as his feet hit the ground and readjusted Amu in his arms to get a look at her face. She was unconscious. Gritting his teeth in anger at what those bastards had done to her, he rushed inside and locked the door. He looked around the dark room, remembering it just like the last time he'd been here. He also remembered a lower level of sorts under ground. Carrying Amu, he swiftly headed down a pipe line that he just barely fit into and landed on his feet again at the bottom. Eyeing a cot, he set Amu down on top of it and brushed the hair from her closed eyes.

"Amu?" He asked again. "Please wake up, Amu." Her hands were still wrapped around her injured leg, beautiful face pale white. Ikuto was beginning to fear for the worst when Amu slowly opened her eyes, giving a strangled cry as the pain returned. Ikuto silenced her gently, rubbing her forehead. "It's okay, Amu. I'm going to get the bullet out of you and stop the blood. The pain will be gone soon, okay?" His eyebrows were creased in sadness.

"O-okay.." Amu sniffled. "I-Ikuto, are my chara's okay?"

Ikuto looked to the bag Amu had around her stomach and gently pulled it off of her lifting her head up so it wouldn't get caught on her neck and opened it. The three little Shugo Charas popped out of their eggs, faces frightened.

"Thanks, Ikuto, is Amu okay?" Miki asked as Ran and Suu flew over to their injured owner.

"She was shot in the leg. I need you guys to comfort her while I take that bullet out. It has to be done now, otherwise it'll only hurt her more." Ikuto explained to the three charas who had turned their attention towards him. Yoru drifted aimlessly in the air, near Amu's head.

"How are you going to get it out, Ikuto, nya?"

Ikuto didn't answer for a moment, groping around inside the school bag he'd brought with him and setting his violin case on the ground. He pulled out a single pair of pliers. Amu, who had been watching what he was doing, whimpered at what he was holding.

"I'll be as gentle as possible, Amu." He promised her. She simply nodded, squeezing her honey colored eyes shut. Ikuto slowly moved towards her leg, and tenderly touched the wound with two slender finger tips. Amu winced.

"They didn't get it too bad." Ikuto said quietly. "It isn't deep or anything which is good and is not too serious of an injury. Once I get it out and stop the blood, you should be fine, although you won't be able to walk for a couple of days."

"Oh, great." Amu grumbled. "That means youre going to have to look after me. Wasting your time taking care of a little kid.."

Ikuto smiled slightly as he pulled out a small needle to numb her with. "I won't have a problem with it. And I'm going to numb you in about a second so you don't feel when I take the bullet out." He carefully stuck her with it but she didn't give any indication she had felt it.

"Did you put it in already?"

"Yeah." Ikuto blinked.

Amu lifted her head to look. "No way, I didn't even feel it." She gave him a semi-glare. "Did you take medical classes or something? You could be a doctor or a nurse!"

Ikuto blanched. "No. God, no, I wouldn't want to be a doctor or a nurse. I just had a lot of experience taking care of myself. And I took these along in case we needed them. I got bandages for the blood, too." He began taking the bullet out.

There was silence while he worked, slowly and carefully pulling out the small black bullet that had gone into Amu's flesh. He tossed it into a small garbage bin at the wall next to him and began wrapping Amu's leg in a heavy load of bandages. He didn't know if the bleeding would become heavy and it was better to make sure it wouldn't just seep through if it did.

"How do you think they found us, Ikuto?" Amu whispered quietly.

He sighed. "I don't know. How ever they did it, it really is effective for them. We're going to have to be more cautious than ever. They'll most likely figure out we're in here in a couple of hours or even minutes, depending on how soon they awake. It also matters if they heard our whole conversation or not. If they did, we're going to have to leave again soon."

Amu sighed sadly as Ikuto finished bandaging her leg and moved it somewhat, the numbing Ikuto had put in it keeping her from experiencing pain for now. "I had thought.. before we got off the train.. that Easter would have a less likely chance of finding us, so we could have a little bit of fun before.. you know.." She laid her head on her uninjured knee, watching Ikuto.

"I had thought we could afford to rest a little easy too, but.. it appears not. We can't have any time for letting our guard down. They can strike us at any moment, and we're going to have be prepared for that. Before was just practice. Our eyes have got to be open at all times, and we've got to watch out for each other." He explained slowly, turning his head to look her in the eyes again. "And this time.. I promise I won't let them hurt you. They won't ever lay a finger or a bullet on you again."

Amu could only nod, at a loss for words at the intensity in Ikuto's eyes. Abruptly, he stood and set his violin case to into the pipeline, plugging it.

"He knows all of my hiding places.." Ikuto was whispering so quietly Amu could barely hear him, and she wondered if he was saying this to her or to himself. "Yeah... you know everything about me, don't you? But I won't let you win.." His quiet voice was filled with hatred, and Amu could only watch him and wonder exactly what the relationship between him and the director of Easter was, and what had happened to Ikuto in his childhood to have emanated that kind of hate.


	11. 30 Minutes Of Evading

**Author's Note: **Hello again, guys! XD Boy, am I just updating up the wall. Oh well, lol. You guys deserve it, after having nothing for weeks on end. And actually, I think it's the freaking long ass wait for episode 51 that's getting to me. Speaking of the anime, did anyone else bust out laughing when Ikuto owned his step-father in 50? I mean, damn, if only he could do this in the manga, I'd be fangirling up the wall! Ahem. I went through chapters 1-6 and updated/edited them slightly and will do 7-11 tonight and each time I do another chapter will proofread and edit so in case you ever want to re-read this fanfic, it'll be without grammar and spelling mistakes. I want the fic to be entertaining for you, and not constantly ruined by the flaws with it.

Hope you enjoy this one! And I've decided I will do two this weekend. Maybe more. We'll see. I also have some AMV's to work on before the 2nd season of Shugo Chara and Vampire Knight come out, so.. but I'll try and make this top priority. :) Enjoy!

**ALSO: **There's some major... "smut" in this chapter. Of course, they don't "do it", but even writing this made me all giddy. XD Maybe it's because I can seriously see this scene in my head, ha ha ha! XD

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**CHAPTER 11: 30 MINUTES OF EVADING **

The hours that passed Amu and Ikuto were stretched in silence. Every time they heard any sound, as little as it may be, they tensed, Ikuto getting to his feet as if he were a lion ready to pounce. Amu was somewhat surprised to see Ikuto acting so alertly and as if he were desiring violence. She'd even go out on a limb and say that Ikuto, had he fled on his own, would be waiting to just get into some kind of physical fight. The look in his eye after Amu had been injured... something seemed to have awoken inside of him. Some desire to inflict pain, revenge. He had been pacing back and forth for the last thirty minutes and showed no signs of stopping. His eyes were narrowed dangerously, his fists clenched, roaming like a wild animal in a cage.

It kind of made Amu nervous. She wasn't used to seeing this side of Ikuto. She didn't even think he _had_ a side of him like this. And he was talking to himself again, rambling, his breathing fast and heavy.

"Come and find me, you bastard. Come on." He grit his teeth as he walked past Amu again. She shrunk against the wall now, not yet having enough strength to walk. Her wounded leg had finally begun hurting again. An hour ago, the numbing Ikuto had given her had worn off, and she fought the pain as she continued to watch Ikuto, whose quickened paces were now beginning to scare her. He was just thirsting for a fight.

"Ikuto..?" She called his name timidly, afraid he might suddenly turn and snap at her. He stopped, and looked at her, the death glare still upon his face. "A-are you okay, Ikuto?" She asked, her shoulder's hunching in tension.

He chuckled. "Am I okay? Yeah, I'm fine, Amu. Or at least, I will be once I kill those bastards once and for all."

Amu's eyes widened. There was something definitely off about him now aside from his rational behavior. His words and tone were dark and menacing. "You... you actually plan to kill them?"

He must have noticed how fear-filled her eyes were, because his eyes widened and he stopped pacing, his hands at his side, his head bent down. "I--I'm sorry, Amu. I didn't mean to scare you.. I don't... I'm just.. so mad that they had dared to even try to kill you. I just can't take it. I want to make _him_ suffer like he made _me_ suffer."

Amu knew he was referring to Easter's managing director, and again the curiosity of their relationship rose inside her like an igniting fire. "You keep mentioning him, but.. what... what did he do to you... to make you... hate him like you do?"

He sighed deeply, and walked over to Amu, taking a seat beside her. He ran his hand over his eyes and placed it on his lap. "It's not that I don't want to tell you, Amu, but... I don't think I'd be able to. I don't trust myself to." At Amu's inquiring look, he elaborated, "Or rather, my temper. I do have one. I just keep it at bay. Most of the time. There are some times, like now, where it overwhelms me and I get somewhat violent, and I don't want to have to talk about him and wind up hurting you on accident." He explained.

Amu shivered, chilled. There were so many things, so many secrets about Ikuto still being kept from her. When she'd thought she at last finally got to know him, now she realized she barely knew him at all, barely knew him enough to know that there was so many things he was angry about, so many things in his past that fed his anger like a sickness. The dark thoughts in his mind... did Easter feed off of it? His hate, his desire for revenge? Was that how they manipulated and controlled him? By using his justified feelings for them? The thought made Amu sick to her stomach.

"But I would never hurt you, Amu." Ikuto whispered quietly. "Not on purpose, or on accident. I can control my temper to a certain extent." He looked over at her and smiled slightly, finally calmed down. Amu leaned over and laid her head against his arm, looking up into his deep blue irises.

"What calms you, Ikuto? When you're angry?"

He smiled down at her and played with a stand of hair dangling on her slender nose. "You. If I think of you, I can calm myself down. Or, when I'm with them, I think about the time I'll get to see you again, and that gives me the ability to get through what ever job they've given me. But even so... when I break the X-eggs... it feels like I'm crushing your hope and trust in me.. and I despise that as much as I despise them." The hand on his lap formed into a fist again.

"I mean that much to you?" Amu asked him quietly.

"You do," Ikuto admitted. "You've always meant that much to me."

Amu grinned and closed her eyes. "I keep thinking... wondering... what would have happened had we gotten together like this without Easter coming after us.. and sitting together under the sun.. just the two of us.. happy... "

Ikuto smiled despite himself and looked up at the ceiling. "It can still happen. If we get through this, I'm going to make sure it does happen."

"I'll take your word on that." Amu murmured, getting tired against Ikuto's warm body. "You're so warm. And you say kids temperatures are warm.."

"Well, I am still a kid myself, you know." He reminded her.

Amu re-opened her eyes, looking up sadly at him. "You were forced to grow up too quickly, weren't you?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah. I was." His voice was despairing.

"Is that why you treat me the way you do? Teasing me? To be a kid again, and enjoy it?" Amu asked him quietly.

"No, I do that because you're fun to mess with, and you fall for it so easily." Ikuto smirked playfully. Amu grunted and smacked his arm.

"P-pervert! And I-I don't fall for it!"

"Of course you do." Ikuto's perverted grin returned. "You get all red and start stuttering like you are now. _Do I make you hot, Amu_?" He whispered seductively in her ear. Amu shot up away from his arm and at the back of the wall so fast Ikuto began laughing.

"W-what k-kind of q-question i-is t-t-that, you p-pervert?!" She sputtered, her cheeks reddening yet again. Ikuto was holding his gut in laughter, and Amu had the sudden urge to knock that grin right off of his face. "Stop laughing at me, you jerk!"

Ikuto regained his composure, wiping tears from his eyes. "Sorry, it's not you I'm laughing at, it's your expression. You make the cutest expressions I've ever seen in my life. You're too cute for your own good, Amu-chan."

"D-don't call me that, and _you're_ totally not _cute_, you perverted neko boy!" Amu turned away from him as Ikuto began laughing again. "Oh, just shut up! You're annoying!" (A/N: Aww we all know you love it when Ikuto-kun teases you, Amu-chan. ;D Don't act like you don't.)

"Hey, now, you don't need to get some mad, kiddy." Ikuto smirked. Amu whipped around and glared at him.

"I'm not a kid."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"Real mature."

"Same for you, little boy!"

"Little boy, hm? Would you like me to show you _proof _that I'm not a little boy?"

"UGH, you fucking perv --"

But his lips had swooped down and captured hers. Her eyes widened slightly at being kissed without warning, but she did not break it. Nor did she have any intention to. She closed her eyes as his sanguine life mingled with hers, their tongues clashing against each others. Ikuto broke the kiss quickly, still grinning as he saw Amu's dissatisfied expression. "What? You want more, kiddy?"

"N-no, and d-don't call me a kid!" Again, his tongue found it's way into her open mouth, and again she was unresisting to it. She returned it despite her anger at him, and his arms snaked around her waist and pulled her onto his lap where he broke it again.

"How was that, angel?" He purred. Amu thought her face would explode with the extremity of her blushing. _Angel_? Since when did he called her an _angel_?

She smirked. "Horrible, you perverted devil."

"Ha ha." Ikuto replied sarcastically, removing his arm around her waist. "But you should know, Amu, that the devil is not perverted. He's evil, yes, but not perverted."

Amu grumbled. "Guess you got me there. Fine, your kissing was perfect, _angel_."

"Oooh, a two-way game now, huh?" Ikuto's hot breath hit her face again as lowered it directly inches from hers. "Who will be the first to make the first move?"

"N-neither because in case you forgot, I'm still a kid." Amu said in an annoyed voice.

Ikuto chuckled. "Quite a perverted mind you have, kiddo. I wasn't talking about sex."

Amu blushed again. "W-what makes you think I'm thinking about _t-that_?!"

"Your facial expressions, of course. Your face makes you easy to read."

Amu used her uninjured leg to stomp on Ikuto's foot.

"Ow!" Ikuto released his hold on her, gripping his right foot. "What did you do that for? That wasn't cute."

"You always pick on me like that," The girl huffed, her cheeks red in anger instead of embarrassment for once. "I don't like to hear that from you, how vulnerable I am."

"Hey..." Ikuto touched her should and turned her around to face him, and Amu saw his hurt expression. "I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry if I offended you, Amu. I was just kiddng. Everything I say... I try to show how much I love you, not to get you angry at me."

Amu couldn't stay angry at that kitty-eyed (don't ask, lmao) look and sighed. "I just felt that it would look the same to everyone else like it did to you."

Ikuto touched her lips with his index finger, brushing gently. "No one sees you the way I do."

And without warning, he seized her and pulled her into a gentle, protective hug, a hug Amu was all too willing to return. "And no one will love you the way I do," He added, his arms wrapped around her back. Amu snuggled her head against his shoulder.

"No one will love you like I do, either. And no one will get angry at you like I do, too."

He chuckled and released her, removing another bang from her eyes and behind her ear. His fingers brushed against it, making Amu squirm in pleasure. She'd forgotten that like him, her ears were her weakness. This didn't go unnoticed by Ikuto.

"Thinking perverted thoughts again, are we?"

"N-no!" Amu objected. "I was just remembering that time. It.. it was only the second time I really got to meet you. And you said we were now enemies.." She looked at the ground, eyes downcast. "Even then, I didn't like hearing that. I... I thought we could be friends... somehow."

"You were wrong to think that." Ikuto whispered. Amu's heart sank. "... back then." She looked up at him and he was watching her with omniscient eyes. "Things were different back then than they are now. Even after this is said and done with Easter, once we go back home because I have hope that we will, we will continue to be friends and what ever more you want. Hell, I'd even say I'd like to patch things up with Tadase, but.. I doubt he'd let the past go so easily." Ikuto frowned.

Before Amu could respond, there was a loud bang and the sound of glass breaking followed by a triumphant yell. Amu's fearful eyes met Ikuto's determined ones.

"It's them, I can feel it." He muttered. "Climb on my back. This is no time to be picky," He snapped at her as she gave him a protestant look, "We've got to get out of here before they get down here."

Amu reluctantly obeyed, and Ikuto grabbed his violin and his and Amu's bags and ran towards the back wall where a small, single window was just beyond arm's length.

"Amu, you're going to have to climb on my shoulder's and you're going to have to climb out first."

"What?" Amu gasped, as Ikuto began hoisting her up. "But Ikuto --"

"No buts, just do it!" He ordered as the guards finally figured out where they were and began climbing down the pipeline, and Amu took a deep breath against the searing pain in her leg and climbed through it onto ground level, rolling onto her back in green grass. She got to her feet immediately, looking around to check for more guards but found none. She turned her attention back to the window where Ikuto was just beginning to climb out.

He tossed his violin and their bags up first, and Amu just barely managed to catch them and set them on the grass before extending her arm out for Ikuto's to pull him up. She'd taken hold of his arm when Ikuto started being pulled away from her. His eyes widened, and he glanced downwards to see that Yukari had taken hold of his left foot, pulling him back down. Amu, now frightened, used both hands and angrily pulled on Ikuto, desperately trying to get him up with her. Ikuto grunted as he attempted to kick Yukari away from him, and then there was a semi-loud blast and Ikuto groaned.

"Ikuto!" Amu screamed, struggling harder. "Are you okay?!"

"Bitch shot me," Ikuto growled, and he threw himself to the side, kicking Sanjou clean across the face and releasing her hold on his leg and pulled himself up just as another shot fired missing him by an inch. He rolled onto his back on the grass for a split second before jumping to his feet and seizing Amu's hand and throwing the violin case across his back and Amu's bag into her hand. "Come on!"

They ran quickly, Ikuto limping as the blood from the shot wound to his leg erupted in pain.

"You can do it, Ikuto." Amu encouraged. "Please don't pass out now.."

Ikuto panted through the pain, walking more quickly at almost a jog. Amu grasped the heart around her neck and glanced determinedly at Miki who was alongside her with Ran and Suu and seemed to get the point of the stare.

"Okay, Amu-chan." She agreed. Amu transformed within seconds becoming Amulet Spade. She let go of Ikuto and instead flew a foot above him and seized the back of his high school jacket, pulling him up with it. He blinked in disbelief and Amu groaned while trying to fly and yet keep him from dropping.

"Jeez, Ikuto, you're heavy!"

He didn't respond, and Amu looked down at him to see if he'd heard her when she saw that he'd passed out. "Oh great!" She groaned. "I've got to get him to a hospital. Miki, can we find a hospital, please?"

"Sure, Amu-chan." Came Miki's echoed voice from inside her.

"No." Amu glanced down again to see that Ikuto had awoken. "There's somewhere else.. we can go.. we need to get a train and get to the suburbs. There's a pretty cheap hotel out there that we can stay at. They won't be expecting us to to such a public place."

"Okay, we can do that," Amu agreed. "But I need to get that wound treated, it looks really bad."

"I can get it treated once you're safe, Amu." He said sternly. Amu glared down at him.

"Stop being so stubborn, will you? You can't go onto a train bleeding so heavily."

"You're right, which is why you're going to have to pull my bullet out and patch me up now."

"EH?" Amu sputtered. "_Me_ patch _you_ up?"

"Well, I can't really pull out the bullet myself, can I, when I'm likely to pass out again?" He inquired. Amu sighed impatiently.

"Fine, fine, but where do we go to do that? There must be a ton of Easter's guards around here..."

"There's an old church around here that we can hide in. They wouldn't dare go in there."

"A.. a _church_?" Amu asked in disbelief. "You've gone in a_ church_?"

"... Tadase's family took us once."

Amu sighed, shaking her head. "Fine, but I just hope no pastor pops out of nowhere asking --"

"It's abandoned, no one will be there."

"Good." She sighed. "I just don't want people asking questions. And I see it."

She landed smoothly upon the ground setting Ikuto down gently and changed back. Her clothes were dirty from dirt and grass stains, but she couldn't change here. She'd change when they got to the hotel Ikuto had mentioned. She supported Ikuto into the abandoned building and was pleased to see that it was, indeed, empty. She sat Ikuto down on one of the benches and began taking out the pliers and bandages and pulled up Ikuto's bloodied pants leg. Her stomach turned at the blood covering his light flesh and tenderly poked at the part she could see the bullet in with the edge of the pliers. Ikuto winced, but did not pull away and Amu's shaking fingers began to work.

"I hope I do it okay, I've never done this before." She said, glancing nervously at Ikuto's wound and gripped the bullet with the pliers and slowly began to pull. Ikuto groaned in pain and clenched his hand into a fist, teeth grinding together from the pressure.

"Y-you're doing fine, keep going until it's out even if I yell." He told her. Amu nodded reluctantly.

She finished pulling out the bullet, Ikuto only pulling away once the entire time, and quickly cleaned the wound and bandaged it before replacing the pants leg. Ikuto moved it somewhat, and Amu noticed the attempts Ikuto did to hide the pain as he did.

"It'll hold until we get to the hotel. Then maybe I can let a doctor look at it if it's really bad. And you too. Thank you, Amu." He patted her head and Amu simply nodded, following him as he began to limp out the church's double doors.

"By the way, how much money do you have on you?" She asked.

"A lot." Ikuto admitted. "Utau's pretty famous, so she's rolling in the dough. She got me about eight hundreds from her bank account and two fifty's, so we got nine hundred dollars."

"Wow." Amu breathed. "Do hotels cost a lot?"

"Yeah, but we'll have a lot left. They only cost around a hundred for each person for about a week. And once we're there, you can give your friends a call and your parents if you want and I can call Utau."

Amu smiled, liking that plan. "We really are going to be okay there, aren't we?"

"I hope so, because I need time to figure out how they're tracking us in the first place and I can't get time to think when they're just appearing like hell and attacking us every few hours."

"Yeah." Amu agreed.

Even with Ikuto's limping, they reached the station in ten minutes flat. He got two tickets and almost no time at all they were on board a train for the Kyoto suburbs, where Amu hoped things would calm down a bit. Ran, Miki and Suu were lying in her lap, asleep. Yoru was looking out the window, predatory and cat-like. Amu looked up at Ikuto.

"Aren't our charas being a litle too.. quiet to you?" She asked him. He looked at her, nodding.

"I've noticed that too. I think it's because our feelings affect their mood. I must say it's a nice change for Yoru, since he's so loud and lively all the time."

"Hey, nya!" Yoru huffed, offended. Ikuto smirked.

"We should be there in about half-an-hour to an hour, so not as long as the last ride was." He told Amu. She nodded easily.

"How are you feeling, Ikuto? Your wound?"

He shrugged. "Still hurts like hell, but I'll get it checked out later. And yours?"

Amu moved her leg around, noting the small dulling ache that still remained. "Still hurts too, but not as bad. I think I was too scared when she'd grabbed you and what was happening that I forgot all about the pain, but it's coming back now."

Ikuto looked at her. "That's how I felt right after. The desire to protect you though made me forget all about it." His fist clenched. "Damn that Yukari. On top of the gunshot wound, she left a bruise on my leg."

Amu winced. "She was.. I kept thinking about what would have happened had she pulled you down and I couldn't grab you. You would be.." She choked, tears threatening to spill.

Ikuto pat her face affectionately. "She didn't, and that's all that matters. And besides, has she actually got me, I would have beat the hell out of her, grabbed that gun and shot her first. If we run into her again, I'm returning the favor. For you and for me." His voice grew harsh at the last words.

Amu said nothing and stared out past the window, into the brilliant sunset on the horizon. "The sunset's beautiful."

Ikuto gazed at it and managed a smile. "Maybe tomorrow night, once we're safe, we can actually sit outside and watch it."

Amu closed her eyes, grinning. "I'd like that. I'd like that more than anything."

Right now, she looked forward to the dawn, the start of a new day, a day hopefully without the threat of Easter looming around them.


	12. 30 Minutes Of Fighting

**Author's Note**: Hi, guys! First, before I get into the chapter...

AHHHHHHH! Ep 51 is LOVE! You have to see it if you haven't already. Even if it's raw, that ep was pure epicness. I was actually... confused.. and unsure about Ikuto's feelings in my fanfic, his desire to protect Amu and how deep it was. I had doubts of how far he'd actually go to protet her, but 51 cleared that all away for me. I guess I needed reassurance, and that did it. I mean, we'd seen him protect her before, but not to the extent he did in that episode where he got himself injured for her. That makes me positive that I was going in the right direction, making him willing to be the sacrifice to save Amu's life, if it needed to happen. Thank you, Satalite!

Now... this chapter is quite long, so I hope you enjoy. I am half way finished with this story as of this chapter, and I assure you, the second half, if you've liked it until now, will be much more romantic, have more action, and will be shocking. I've been tame, but it's going all out now. .

Read and review, please! :)

**EDIT: **Been working on this for nearly a week now, and had no time to proofread yet so I will once I do chapter 13. This one's soo long. XD

--

**CHAPTER 12: 30 MINUTES OF FIGHTING**

They reached the suburbs of Kyoto before Amu could come up with any theories on how Easter was managing to track her and Ikuto. And from his strained and frustrated expression, neither had Ikuto. His gaze was appointed to the window behind him, where he watched the plains zoom past his eye sight, and Amu knew he was regularly keeping an eye out for Easter. His eyes appeared thoughful, but his attention was still in tact when the train ductor announced their stop. Amu got up immediately and Ikuto struggled to his feet, limping and groaning from the gun shot wound he'd sustained from Yukari as they had escaped their hide out. Amu encouragingly groped his arm to held right him, and he smiled at her fondly as the doors opened and they stepped out onto the country-like area and the platform.

The place was deserted for save one or two common people, and the pair sighed in relief as the continued on. The hot sun beat down on them as it begun to move behind the clouds, evening approaching, and Amu closed her eyes at the gentle warmness, appreciating it's rays more than she ever had. Her eyes reopened as she glanced at Ikuto who also seemed relaxed with the warm air. She smiled. If there was one thing she could look forward to throughout this whole mess, it was seeing the sunrise and sunset with Ikuto, something he promised they'd do together, and she didn't doubt him. She knew he was telling her the truth.

They soon stopped directly outside a fancy building that Amu knew immediately to be the hotel. Ikuto held her hand as they walked inside and Amu had to stare in amazement at the luxiorious hall where a single desk was placed and a woman was seated. Amu also noticed a tall, dark-haired man slouching against the wall behind the woman at the desk, who glanced at them for a mere second before looking away and the woman looked up and smiled kindly at them as they approached.

"Hello!" She greeted them kindly. "How may I help you two?"

Ikuto nodded at her in welcome and smiled. "I'd like a room for two, please, with a telephone if it's available and food service."

"Okay," The woman nodded. "And would you like one bed or two?" She looked at Amu, grinning again.

"Er.." Amu began blushing, knowing the hostess assumed they were a couple. "Two."

Ikuto chuckled lightly and shook his head. "Two's good. And maybe two bathrooms since girl's take forever in there."

"Hey!" Amu glared, offended, but the woman didn't seem to mind. She laughed.

"Yes, us girls do take awhile, I admit. But that's because we have to look presentable for fine gentlemen like you." She winked.

Amu found herself getting jealous; this woman.. was she flirting with Ikuto?! But Ikuto smiled down at her, assuring her he didn't take it like that and looked back up at the hostess. "Thank you very much."

"You're welcome," The woman said cheerfully. "I'll get Drew to get you to your rooms. Do you have any luggage?" She asked.

"Some," Ikuto nodded. "Two bags of clothing and other items and my violin."

"Oh, you play?" The hostess inquired, just as the dark-haired man who apparently was named Drew came walking up to him. Obviously, he had been listening.

"Yeah." Ikuto told her as he handed the dark-haired man his violin case and his bag and Amu hurried to do the same. She hoped the man wouldn't check them and notice her eggs, but he smiled at her and simply held it when she handed it to him. She hoped Ran, Miki and Suu were okay in their eggs. She turned her attention back to Ikuto and the hostess.

"That's good," The hostess smiled at Ikuto. "Drew will lead you to your room now. Hope you enjoy your stay, and your amount is 312.15"

"Thank you." Ikuto paid her and led Amu ahead of him as they followed Drew. The man glanced at Ikuto's injured leg and raised an eyebrow.

"Did you get hurt, boy?"

"A minor injury." Ikuto muttered as he limped. "Although I'm thinking of getting it checked out eventually."

"Ah, you shouldn't play around with injuries, son. They can be more serious than you realize." The man told him wisely.

"Yes, I know." Ikuto smiled, although his voice had turned somewhat sharp. Amu got the feeling that Ikuto was not one who liked to hear advice. The rest of the walk, which was short, was silent, and the man stopped in front of a door with a sign labled 112 and pulled out a key and turned the lock and turned the knob to open the door. He moved aside to allow them to view it, and Amu gasped in amazement as she glimpsed the size of it.

The beds themselves had to be around king sized, and there was a small couch with a medium sized TV as well as the two bathrooms Ikuto had requested and a small refrigerator. Amu stood there looking dumbfounded, and quickly rearranged her features into a huge smile as she swerved her head around to look at Ikuto. He caught her eye, and smiled gently again.

"It's fine?" Drew asked, looking pleased at the look on their faces.

"Yes, it's great!" Amu said breathlessly, as she darted into the room to get an even greater look. There was a large window just ahead of her, allowing her to see the country side as well as the city and she stared in awe as she saw a small river and bridge not too far from them.

"I'm glad you like it." Drew said, nodding proudly as he set their belongings down onto one of the beds and turning around to hand Ikuto two pairs of keys. "These are for if you're going out and need to lock up. If you need anything else, just tell us at the front desk, and hope you enjoy your stay." He smiled at Ikuto, who nodded.

"Thank you." The man left, and Ikuto finally came into the room and shut the door, looking around impressively. He walked over to Amu and placed his arms around her waist, planting a kiss on the top of her head. "It really is a nice room. I'm glad you like it, Amu."

Amu swerved her head around and grinned up at him. "I don't like it. I love it." And she stood up on her tip-toes and kissed his lips, making Ikuto blink in shock. Amu laughed and pushed herself away from Ikuto and began running around the room as if hoping he'd chase her. Ikuto smirked; he'd give her what she wanted. If she wanted to play tag, he'd have no trouble at all at catching her. She may be fast, but he was faster.

"Oh, you want to play?" He snickered, and leapt at her, growling playfully. Amu shrieked in a laugh and took off, throwing herself over the couch and ran past the refrigerator. Ikuto smiled; time to even the score. "Yoru," He whispered quietly. "Chara change." Yoru snickered and obeyed and as Ikuto's cat ears popped out, Amu screamed and fell into laughter again and jumped out of the way as Ikuto, much faster now, began to really begin the pursuit. Amu ran into the bathroom and darted out the other doorway that led onto the other side of the room that Ikuto knew the kitchen to be on, and quickly caught on to Amu's plan. So, she was planning to come around the other side hoping he'd run after her, did she? Well, he wasn't going to give her that. He drew back and hid himself in front of the wall next to the doorway she was planning on coming through and just as he did, she ran out, not noticing him, and seeing his opening, seized her around the waist and pushed her onto one of the beds, where he began to tickle her and she broke out into laughter again.

"No, Ikuto, stop!" She choked. "S-stop!" She attempted to push him off, but he was too strong for her, and he smirked as he leaned down and planted a kiss on her lips, her open mouth allowing him entrance. He kissed her, hungrily and protectively, and broke it seconds later, his body lying on top of hers, and she stared into his eyes with absolutely no fear. So gently brushed Ikuto's dark bangs from his eyes and he rolled off of her to lay next to her.

"Are you hungry, Amu?" He aked her, his beautiful blue eyes intense again. Amu blushed and simply nodded. He extended his hand and she took it as he pulled her small frame into his arms and got off the bed, walking towards the kitchen and pulled the refrigerator door open. "Let's see.." he scanned it's containments. "Well, there's some bread, cheese and lunchmeat for tonight, if you want that."

"That's fine." Amu agreed.

Ikuto smiled and gently lowered her to the floor. "Tomorow night.. I'm taking you out for a real dinner."

"That sounds great." Amu whispered breathlessly. "Wow.. our first dinner together.."

He ruffled her hair. "We'll get chocolate milkshakes, too." He added.

"Ha ha. It's good we both like chocolate then." Amu grinned, making her a sandwhich. "Ikuto, aren't you going to eat something?"

"Yeah, but first I'm going to look at the entertainment center and see what movies we have." He began to head out, but paused in the doorway. "After we eat, we should take showers, and after that, you should call your parents and your friends. Just to let them know everything's okay."

"Oh yeah." Amu nodded.

He headed into the other room. "Oh, and tomorrow morning, I'm going to go ask the desk if they have any kind of laundry room or something to clean our clothes."

Amu blinked, surprised. Ikuto thought of everything, didn't he? "Wow.. er, okay."

She returned to making her a sandwhich, barely paying attention. She wondered if Ikuto was always this organized and responsible, or if he was just being that way around her. She had finished and was about to follow Ikuto back into the other room when her wounded leg gave a painful throb. She winced and gripped it, rubbing it gingerly to stop the pain. It must have started hurting again because she'd run around. She knew she shouldn't have, but she wanted to feel carefree again, to know if she was still capable of feeling it, of being able to have a small amount of fun. She wanted to be sure she could laugh so effortlessly again.

Fighting the pain, she headed into the room where Ikuto was on one knew, looking through the DVD's. She gazed at his wounded leg, which he had proped against the television and outsteched somewhat in a gesture to relieve the pain. She frowned, knowing it still hurt him, even if his face didn't show it. He looked up when he saw she was staring at him.

"They don't have much." He sighed. "Should have known, with a hotel this good on looks and feel, but not accessories."

Amu took a bite out of her sandwhich. "What do they have?"

"Old timing movies, mostly, but.." He trailed off. He was staring at a DVD case he'd just picked up, looking as if he might cry.

"Ikuto?" Amu blinked. "Are you.. what's wrong?"

"Nothing." He said curtly, and he quickly replaced the DVD and pulled out another and smiled. "All right, they have The Bourne Ultimatium. I've been wanting to see that."

"The Bourne Ultimatium?" Amu asked blankly. "What's it about?" **(A/N: I love that movie!)**

"There were two movies before it, but it's mainly about this guy, Jason Bourne, who was a former eployee of the CIA and failed to report in on a mission he was given and lost his memories and is now being tracked by his former employees. He lost the girl he loved in the last one, and he's trying to go on from there and figure out exactly who he is and how he came to be with the people he worked for." He watched Amu's blank expression turn into one of recognition.

"That... it seems familiar, doesn't it?" She whispered. Ikuto nodded slowly.

"It does. Too familiar. Except I won't allow myself to lose you." He caught her eye, and she smiled slightly at him, taking another bite out of her food. "If you want to watch something else, we can."

"No, no, I'd like to see it, turn it on." Amu shook her head and sat down on the couch as Ikuto placed the DVD inside the DVD player and turned on the TV. The main menu came on, but Ikuto did not press play.

"I'm going to get myself something, then we can start it." He waited for Amu's nod and headed back into the kitchen.

Amu chewed slowly as she ate another bite, staring curiously at the shelf with the DVD's on it, and wondered why Ikuto had not let her see the DVD he'd seen and put away. What ever it was, she knew it had to be a movie that had to affect him deeply, and just like when she had asked him questions pertaining to Easter and it's employees, he couln't bring himself to answer her. The wounds buried deep inside him... it seemed to her as if they were on the surface, just kept at bay. He refused to talk about it, and Amu sighed, wishing she could get Ikuto to open up more to her, so she could finally understand why he worked for Easter, or whether he'd really had a choice in it at all.

Ikuto re-entered the room minutes later and sat down next to her and played the movie, taking a bite out of his own sandwhich, and as the movie began and progressed, Amu asked herself if the thoughts the main character had were the same running through Ikuto's mind. The situations, she saw, were eerily similar. She watched the movie in almost awed silence as Jason Bourne spoke at the man he'd just repreived from death.

"Look at us." He was saying. "Look at what they make you give."

Amu's heart thudded loudly in her chest as the hidden message in that one sentence alerted her to the realization of Ikuto's situation. He was forced to give up everything because of Easter -- the life he wanted, the life he could have had, the days he should have spent enjoying life as a kid, but growing up too fast. It all hit her like an oncoming train, and she found herself crying, and threw herself at Ikuto in a tight embrance, startling him.

"Amu, what's wrong?" His voice was even shocked.

"I didn't know!" She choked. "I didn't know that they were that cruel to you! I didn't.. all that time, and I should have realized.. you never wanted to work for Easter, or give your soul away for them, your very life! It isn't fair that you've had to suffer so much!" She squeezed her eyes shut as the tears leaked down her face, and yet she only gripped Ikuto tighter. "Your wish, to be free... I understand now, Ikuto. I do. And I'm sorry I never took time to think about it before!" She was sobbing.

"Amu.." Ikuto pulled her gently away from him, gripping her shoulders so he could look her in the face. "I'm sorry, I never should have put it on.."

"No, no, it's fine." She wiped her eyes, sniffling. "It's not the movie, it's just.. now I understand.. just how much pain you're in." She looked into his sad eyes, and he looked away, sighing.

"Yes, I was forced to work for Easter." He whispered. "My mother's family worked for Easter, and she bound Utau and I to work for them until the day we died. She betrayed us, when she'd always told us that we could be what ever we wanted to be, choose the lives we wanted, but in the end, we had to take up the life she had.." His hands balled into fists and he was squeezing so hard his knuckles were turning white. His face was screwed up as though he were in direct, blinding sunlight. "My mother... sold us to Easter, and has never once cared about our dreams and our freedom."

Amu could see he was fighting, but against his protests, tears leaked rapidly from his eyes like streams, and his body shook with suppressed grief. "Ikuto.." She whispered gently, and squeezed his left arm in comfort. "You've been so strong all your life. You're strong, even now, with all that you've had to go through. It's okay to be weak once in awhile. Remember, even the best of us let our barriers down sometimes, don't we?" She repeated the words he had once said to her, and his eyes widened in shock as the tears continued to fall, and he choked out an agonized sob and squeezed his eyes shut as the tears came faster and his body shook with tremors and he finally broke the internal closet door open.

He leaned over and laid his head on Amu's shoulder, and Amu didn't care that his tears were wetting her, and she wrapped her arms around his upper body, lying her head directly on his. "It's okay, Ikuto." She encouraged him. "Let it out. You don't always need to be so strong. Not in front of me." As he continued to cry, she wondered when the last time had been that Ikuto had been able to cry properly, without someone thinking of him as weak. The child inside of him... did it still exist? Did the innocence that he'd had become buried deep inside of him somewhere? If it was.. she was desperate to reawaken it.

Night had fallen when Ikuto had calmed down, his head now lying in her lap, and when he spoke, his voice was cracked and dry. "Thank you, Amu."

"I'm here for you." Amu whispered. "I'm going to be the one to change your life, Ikuto. I'm going to free you from them."

"I'll only be free in death.. I'm destined to work for them, until the day I die. Maybe when I am finally dead... I'll be able to be happy..."

"Please don't talk like that, Ikuto." Amu said sharply. "Death isn't the only way to attain freedom from a bad life. It takes the right person to come along with the right tools to free you from your hell, the one who's willing to listen and yet willing to fight until things are better. And I will fight. I will fight until you are free, and can finally be happy for the rest of your life."

"It's not you I doubt." Ikuto said gently. "It's Easter... and whether fate is willing to let me be free while I'm still alive."

"I'm sure it is," Amu said coaxingly. "You have light inside of you. Faith. And good. You're stronger. Stronger than me, because you've endured so much worse than I have in my entire life. The wounds will only make you stronger, the number of defeats don't matter. But you need to believe in that light, otherwise all of that fighting is for nothing."

Ikuto said nothing, and after a moment he lifted his head, his hair hiding his face and mumbled something about a shower before closing the bathroom door and leaving Amu with an even stronger desire to ensure Ikuto didn't suffer anymore.

--

Amu barely slept that night.

Even though the weight of Easter's threat avoided her for now, and she had taken a shower, called her friend and her parents to let them know she was safe, all relieved, her thoughts wouldn't allow her mind to shut down and sleep. She tossed and turned, and what little sleep she did have was filled with Ikuto, lying dead and chalky white before her, only free from Easter in death. She'd woken up in a cold sweat, breathing heavily, her heart racing and had to check to make sure Ikuto was still sleeping soundly in the bed next to her.

When he had finally awoken, apparently well rested, his carefully constructed good mood had returned, and the first thing he did was laugh at Amu's wild morning hair.

"Really, it's all over the place!" He chuckled, pointing at her. "You really should see it in the mirror. What'd you do, roll around in your sleep like you were having a seizure?"

"Oh, shut up." She snapped grouchily and sleepily, not bothering to inform him that she barely slept at all and trodded into the bathroom to get dressed. He'd been like this since after she'd gotten out of the shower last night and he'd seen the nightgown she was wearing. Although while he had been amused by the teddy bears on it, he'd also been much more perverted once he saw that it was also slightly see-through. Though Amu had been smart enough to put on an under shirt and a pair of shorts to prevent him from getting up and potentially raping her in the middle of the night. But even so, he'd gotten giddy from seeing her wearing it. She scowled as she combed through her hair and put on a pair of black pants and a blue collared t-shirt, the very one, she remembered, that she had worn when Ikuto had tried inserting the key into the lock. She blushed furiously just as Ikuto began pounding on the door.

"What do you want, pervert?" She quickly threw on some socks.

"Are you done yet?" His voice was annoyed. "I need to use the bathroom."

"Wha --? Use your own bathroom! That was why you asked for two, isn't it?" She scoffed.

"I can't, because the hostess got two people here to fix the toilet. It was broken or something."

"Oh..." Amu blinked. "Well, hold your underwear, I'm coming out in a second."

"Hmm? How do you know I wear underwear, Amu?" She could practically see that fucking smirk on the other side of the door.

Blushing hardly, she sweeped up her silky nightgown and placed the barette in her hair. "Ugh, you damned perverted neko."

She yanked the door open and saw Ikuto standing there waiting, and he looked at the clothes in her hand smirked as he snatched her underwear. "Pink panties, huh?"

"UUUGHH!" Amu seized them back, her face now reminiscent of a tomato and threw her hair spray bottle at him as he laughed and limped into the bathroom, slamming the door shut. "Yeah, you better run, you pervert, because when you get out, I don't care if your leg is hurt, I'm going to --"

"Ooh, you want to do something to me when I get out?" He purred. "What do you want to do, _Amu-chan_?"

Amu stamped her foot. "Shut up! Just shut up!" She yelled, and as she walked angrily back to her bag, she saw the two men Ikuto had mentioned look at her nervously. Ignoring them, she replaced her clothing and shoved her pink undies the farthest they would go to the bottom so that she wouldn't reach for them again with Ikuto here. Amu plopped down onto the bed, arms crossed. Ikuto always teased her like that. She hated it. Just then the perverted bastard exited the bathroom completely dressed, his hand to his mouth, stifling a yawn. Amu smirked and jumped up, seizing his boxers.

"H-hey!" He yelled in surprise as Amu swung them over her head.

"Pay back is a bitch, isn't it?" Her eyes glinted evily, evil smirk widening. Ikuto reached out to grab them but she kept moving her arm until Ikuto seized it and snatched his... undergarments back away from her. "Now you know how it feels to have the opposite sex take your underwear. I didn't like that, Ikuto." She huffed, still pink in the face. "You got me mad."

"I'm sorry I made you angry, angel." Ikuto replied, his playful face saddened as though someone (CoughAmuCough) had put a damper on it. Amu quickly changed her facial expression.

"I forgive you, Ikuto, you don't need to get like --"

But Ikuto had pulled her into a hug and kissed her, lifting her off of the floor. Amu responded, and when they broke apart, Ikuto dragged her bottom lip with his teeth slowly until he completely let her go. "You have the lips of an angel." He grinned. "So, let me do this properly. Good morning, my _angel_."

Amu blushed, but quickly adapted herself, looking away from him. "G-good morning."

"Ha ha. Finally, you put on that cool and spicy character I know and love." He smirked. "Haven't seen that in awhile."

"Oh, be quiet, Ikuto." Amu moaned, but she was grinning. "So, did you get the chance to ask about the laundry yet?"

"Not yet." Ikuto admitted, "But I'm going to today. Right now... how about I make my _angel_..." And he swopped her so that she was in his arms, to which Amu protested at, "Some breakfast?"

"Jeez, you'd think we were married." Amu huffed. "We fight, we bicker, and --"

"And then we make up." He grinned, planting another kiss on her. "Just like a real married couple."

"Very funny." Amu said sarcastically as Ikuto set her on the ground and smiled when he opened the refrigerator and saw eggs.

"How convient."

"Huh?" Amu was confused. "What's convient? It's not above people to have eggs, you know."

"Not that," Ikuto turned around, weilding two eggs. "There were only two eggs there, the very last two. Isn't it ironic, that this is how we met?"

Amu's eyes softened in realization, recalling. "Yeah. I remember. We were clearly enemies back then, but now, a little over a year later.. look at us."

"How fate turns.." he murmured, eyes somewhere far away with a distant look inside of them. "Fates can definitely change. For the better.. or the worst. It just took.. the right moves, the right indication that we didn't have to be enemies, even though I kept telling myself it was for the best... even through all of that... now..." He looked back at her. "Now things are different."

"And it can stay that way," Amu assured. "We don't have to be enemies again, once you're free."

"I don't think I'd be able to become your enemy again while I'm still alive and breathing." He whispered. "I'm in too deep now. Now, it would physically hurt me to be away from you."

Amu gasped. "So... all of those times we were separated.. your mind was hurting... wasn't it?"

"There were plenty of nights I just wanted to go to your house just to see you, to stop the pain." He told her. "Many days, all that was on my mind.. was you."

She sighed. "After you'd destroyed that x-egg at the concert last year.. for weeks, I'd thought of you, too. I was so upset, I... felt betrayed and angry."

Ikuto closed his eyes. "If I could rewind to that day, I'd change everything. I knew I'd hurt you. I hurt myself, by hurting you. But I knew I had to get you to hate me, to get you to stay away from me. Even if it broke me." He turned on the stove and took out a pan and butter, where he began cooking. Amu lounged against the refrigerator, watching him.

"When I said I hated you.." Amu cleared her throat. "I was too... I don't know... -- self-righteous? -- to not consider why you had done what you did. It was foolish of me, and I should never have blamed such a thing on you."

"You didn't know." Ikuto said simply. "It wasn't your fault, and I do not blame you, now or back then. My mind kept telling me you were the enemy, and yet.. I kept falling for you."

He turned the eggs over with a spatula and then turned to face her while they cooked. "There's just something about you... you're interesting to me, and I kept being astonished every time I saw you. You're different from the other girls I've known."

His favorite blush that only Amu could provide crossed her face again, and it looked like she was a lost for words to speak. Ikuto smiled slightly and checked on the eggs. The rest of the time that they were waiting, there was nothing but silence except for the crackling of the eggs, and once they were done, Ikuto handed Amu her eggs and they headed into the living room and sat down on the couch next together where they began eating.

"So where are you planning on taking me today?" Amu asked curiously between bites of egg.

Ikuto smirked, and swallowed quickly. "Ah, angel, I can't tell you that. It wouldn't be a surprise if I did."

Amu scowled, even though she knew he was right. "Fine then. Be all secretive. Secrets don't stay secrets forever."

"I wasn't planning on keeping it from you forever..." Ikuto frowned, a crease forming between his eyes and went back to eating. The rest of the meal was eerily silent.

The rest of the day seemed to progress slowly. After breakfast, Ikuto went down to the office to ask about the laundry and once it was approved, took all of their clothes (Smirking pervertedly at Amu's underwear again) down to clean them. He didn't return until a few hours later with wonderfully clean clothes and Amu made sure to take hers from Ikuto before he could get a chance to smirk at her undies again. Lunch was, like breakfast, quiet and subdued, and by the time four o' clock came, Ikuto entered the room wearing black dress clothes, Amu hardly getting time to properly swoon over him when he cleared his throat to get Amu's attention, his fingers shaking slightly as he handled a large bag.

"Earlier when I did the laundry, I went out for a bit to look around, and.. well, I found this clothes shop and when I saw it I just had to get it..." He blushed, surprising Amu. He hardly ever blushed, and here he was now, blushing as pink as she did when she got bashful around him. He wordlessly handed her the bag, his cheeks growing pinker by the second. Amu opened the bag and gasped in awe as she pulled out a long, beautiful blue dress and a pair of high-heeled black shoes. She looked back up at Ikuto, touched, and Ikuto met her gaze with the cutest look, like a wounded puppy, scared she might not like it. But she was far from not liking it.

"Oh, Ikuto, thank you! I love it!" She smiled as brightly as she could, her eyes lighting up, and jumped into Ikuto's arms, who looked relieved that she liked it.

"I'm glad." His cheeks had returned to their normal color, but they were still faintly pink. Amu planted a kiss on his lips, her arms wrapped around his neck, and he kissed her back, his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She kissed him swiftly and finally pulled away, her golden eyes still sparkling with happiness.

"I'm going to go put it on!"

She ran into the bathroom and shut the door eagerly, and Ikuto had to supress a chuckle. That was his Amu. His Amu, and no one else's. He took pride in knowing that this beautiful, pink-haired, golden-eyed angel was his. She came out minutes later, and Ikuto felt as if someone had knocked the wind out of him when he gazed at her. Her pink strawberry hair was up in a bun, with small stands dangling over her eyes. The blue dress fit her perfectly, falling to her knees. The black high-heels seemed to make her taller, but the most astonishing thing about her was..

"You're wearing make-up.." Ikuto's voice was somewhat breathless. Amu blushed, looking at the floor.

"It's.. it's not over done, is it?" And as she looked up to meet his eyes, the mascara and eye liner became even more defined on her face, the blue eye shadow matching with her dress. She walked up to him, and nearly tripped, Ikuto leaning forward to catch her before she fell.

"No, it's not over done.." Ikuto grinned. "It's wonderful. And you look absolutely gorgeous." He steadied her. "And it looks like I'm going to have to hold you all night since you're not used to these shoes and I would hate for you to fall and hurt yourself."

"I've.. I've never really worn high heels," She admitted. "But I'll be fine if you hold me." She winked and laughed, and Ikuto swooped her up in his arms bridal style.

"And I won't let you go." He promised. "Let's go, angel."

She giggled, and he opened the door and locked it, heading down the hall with her. Once they reached the main hall, the man and hostess's mouths dropped open.

"Wow!" The woman blinked. "You both look wonderful! Are you going out to dinner?"

"Yeah," Ikuto smiled, kissing the top of Amu's head, taking in the scent of her scrumptious smelling strawberry shampoo. "We'll be back in a few hours."

"Oh, no problem at all!" The hostess smiled brightly. "You two have fun!"

"Thank you." Ikuto nodded, and turned and headed out the door, still carrying Amu who was blushing furiously.

Passerby stared at them as they walked up the street but Ikuto didn't pay attention to them and set Amu down on the ground once they stopped in front of a beautiful-looking dinner resort. He opened the door for her and bowed slightly, but the smirk was on his face. "Ladies first, angel."

Amu attempted to scowl, but it wound up looking more like a playful growl, and slowly and carefully headed inside, where once she was in, Ikuto joined her, his arm snaked around her waist, carefully helping her. The inside was more beauitful than the outside; fancy dinner tables were all around, and romantic love songs blared over them, and there was a dance floor where couples were currently dancing. Ikuto seized her hand and they were met by a waitress, who grinned widely at them.

"Hello! A table for two?" She looked at them both.

"Yes, please. How about the most private area you have?" He reached inside his pocket and smoothly handed her a tip that didn't go unnoticed by Amu, who had the sudden urge to stomp on his foot.

"Uh, sure." The waitress blinked in shock and led them to the farthest table with candles and black silky curtains at the window. "How's this?"

"Perfect." Ikuto grinned, and the woman nodded.

"We'll have someone come and assist you shortly. Have a great time." And she walked away, leaving them alone. Ikuto pulled a chair out for Amu and, blushing furiously, she took her seat, crossing her legs in a lady-like manner. "Thank you, _sir_."

Ikuto took his seat, smirking, his hands folded under his chin. "You're welcome, _ma'am_." He handed Amu a menu and looked over his own. "Feel free to get something expensive. You don't need to hold back."

Amu nodded slightly, and looked over the menu for a few more minutes when a new waitress showed up, smiling just like the last one.

"Good evening. Have you decided?" She exchanged looks with both of them.

"I have." Ikuto nodded. "I'll have the spaghetti and meatballs special."

"Okay." The woman nodded as she wrote it down. "And how about you?" She looked to Amu.

"U-um.." Amu glanced at the menu for another minute. "I guess I'll.. I'll have the same thing."

Ikuto smirked, but the woman continued to write. "Okay. And drinks?" Ikuto met Amu's eyes.

"Cokes?"

Amu smiled in agreement. "Yeah, that's good."

"Okay. Your order will be ready shortly." The woman smiled again and departed.

There was silence for a few minutes, Amu nervously squirming in her seat and Ikuto simply staring at her until he broke it. "You look beautiful." Amu looked up at him, noting that it seemed that Ikuto couldn't keep his eyes off of her. Admittedly, it was hard for her to not be dazzled by how swoon-inducing he looked when he was dressed up so manly. She cleared her throat, blush returning. "T-thank you. You don't look bad yourself." Damn. There went her cool and spicy attitude again.

Ikuto laughed. "Ah, I was wondering when you would return to your usual way of talking to me."

"Wh-whatever," Amu crossed her arms attempting to look offended, but of course, Ikuto saw right through it and leaned forward so that their faces were inches apart, his sapphire blue eyes meeting her golden irises. Amu practiced breathing properly. "Ah, er, um.."

"How do you like this place?" He asked her sexily. Amu's throat felt hot.

"F-fine. It's r-really n-nice." She stuttered, wishing the waitress would hurry the hell up with her drink so she could put out the fire.

"Oh?" He leaned in closer, and Amu now began taking in gulps of air. Her head felt light, dizzy, and she just hoped she could get herself under control before she passed out here. But then again, it would be _his _fault, causing her to react like this.. "And what would you consider me?"

"Ah!" The woman had returned, weilding the two glasses, and once she placed Amu's down, Amu seized it and drank thirstily, the coldness managing to calm her down. Ikuto merely took a sip, still staring at Amu, and she knew she would not be able to get out of the question. She took a final gulp and set the glass down. "You.. you look... swoon-inducing, Ikuto. Dazzling. Sexy." She found it was easy to say it when he wasn't making her all hot.

He chuckled. "So, did I just make you near passing out?"

"Y-yes." Amu admitted, crossing her arms. "B-but.. it doesn't h-help when you get all in s-someone's f-face like that."

"Oh, so you like it when I get so close to you?" He inquired pervertedly, leaning slightly foward again. "Do you like when I get in your face?"

"U-um.." Amu found herself breathing heavily again as Ikuto drew even closer than before, so their faces were centimeters apart. She could feel his hot breath, and had a thirst now for not soda, but for him. Her tongue danced behind her lips for him, and it took all of her willpower to not unleash an onslaught of kisses on him right there. But she wasn't embarassed by it; if anything, she was glad Ikuto could make her feel this way, and she realized that she had never once felt this way around Tadase. He'd made her blush, but he didn't make her heart race, her head spin, and make her short of breath the way Ikuto did. For the first time, she was in love, and she didn't know love would be this beautiful like the man sitting across from her.

"Ha ha ha." Ikuto drew back, making Amu slightly disappointed and that didn't go unnoticed by him. "Once we're done eating, you can kiss me as much as you want, angel."

"W-who says I w-want to kiss you?" Amu blushed pink again and looked out the window as the waitress returned with their food, setting it down in front of them.

"Have a good meal." She cheerfully smiled at them again and walked away. Amu wasted no time into diving into her food, for something to do other than stare at Ikuto and possibly pass out for sure.

They ate for a few minutes just listening to the music, Amu taking another drink of her soda before speaking. "T-thank you, Ikuto. For taking me out. I really... I really like it." She glanced quickly at him to see him look up from his plate before looking back t hers.

"I promised you. And I wasn't going to break it." He said seriously. "No matter what, I'll never break a promise to you. And I promise that soon... I'll be able to tell you everything that you want to know. I trust you, because what's love without trust, after all? I'm going to be honest with you, and not keep any secrets. I just feel like I can't yet." He seemed ashamed of this fact. Amu, without thinking, reached out and tenderly carressed his hand, grasping it and entwining it with her own.

"I believe you, Ikuto. The time will come soon." She smiled reassuringly at him.

"I just hope I've been able to tell you before Easter's done away with us." He sighed. "I'm trying to become stronger, so I can tell you sooner rather than later, but I still don't trust my own behavior. When I was a child and wished to be free like a cat, free from being told what to do by Easter, and got Yoru, I also wished to be a stronger person so that _he_ couldn't read me so easily." His fingers clenched around his fork. "But... he can see right through me. He can read me like an open book, and I hate knowing he can and not having the self-confidence to believe I can hide it. And you... who can hide yourself so effortlessly... I have to admit, it made me envy you, being able to mask your emotions.. but at the same time.. it made me want to become more like you, Amu."

"Eh? You want to become like me?" Amu questioned. "But... I'm a faker. I'm everybody's fool, hiding behind a mask, without being able to express what I truly feel."

"You may see it as a weakness, but for those who wish they could put up a facade like that.. it's a given strength. And not being able to express what you truly feel.. sometimes it can be a flaw. But it can also keep your feelings safe from those who are out to hurt you. If you can hide behind the mask, you can protect what makes you vulnerable to them. If they can't get to you, they can't hurt you." Ikuto explained sadly. "While being kind and soft-hearted, wearing your heart on your sleeve can be a good thing... it can be a very bad tool in the hands of those with power, like Easter. And for someone like me, that can make it easier for them to control and manipulate you into doing what they want. Like a puppet on a string."

"Ikuto.." Amu whispered gently.

She found that now -- always being the one who say encouraging words -- she could not find the words to encourage Ikuto. She wanted to tell him that he was already as strong as he could be, putting up with it for all of these years, but she knew telling him that right now would only discourage him instead of helping him. Gripping her fork, she forced herself to speak. "I believe.. that there's an inner strength in us all, one that hides behind the surface and isn't unveiled until someone or something helps to bring it out. Like an inner light in the darkness. You've been around negative energy all of your life, energy that controls and overpowers you. But eventually, the light shines, and your inner strength can show through. I believe you have it, Ikuto." She looked him intensely in the eyes, her heart thudding loudly in her chest from the message she was trying to convey.

"I believe in you, Ikuto. I believe you can become stronger. But you're not weak; the power you've been surrounded by for so long has made your defenses seem like a wall that's barely standing, but behind it is another, unbreakable wall. I'm going to help you... I'm going to help you break down the weak barrier and bring out the stronger one. Time will allow it to happen."

She stared at him, and his wide eyes shined with unshed tears, but he did not cry. "They can try to break that unbreakable wall until their fists bleed, but they'll never break it. It is the human sheild, and it doesn't take a miracle to bring it out. It takes positive energy, and time."

Amu found that this was probably the longest rant she'd ever given, but these were words Ikuto needed to hear. This boy sitting across from her, always believing he was weak because of those in power.. Easter. Their tyrancy had made him feel like a mere peasant who was kept around because he was useful to them, not fully appreciated, had broken him. And she would be the one to repair him. Even if it broke her in the process.

"Thank you, Amu." He whispered quietly, and managed a smile. Amu grinned back, relieved to know that Ikuto had heard her. "Have you finished eating?"

Amu looked back at her plate, almost forgetting they were at dinner. "Oh.. um, yes. Are you?"

"Yeah." He grew a smirk again and stood suddenly, his hand outstretched. "Would you like to dance, angel?"

She blushed and got to her feet slowly, taking his hand. "Yes, Ikuto. I'd love to. But... do you think we'll be able to, injured as we are?"

He smiled at her. "We'll take it slow, and not overdo it."

That was fine by her. Obediently, she let Ikuto walk her to the dance floor where he wrapped an arm around her waist and carefully began to lead, skillfully going slowly and she began to respond, feeling like an utter idiot. "I'm horrible at dancing." She muttered.

"I won't laugh at you." Ikuto promised. "We can just do this, and I would be content."

"Me too." Amu sighed, laying her head against Ikuto's chest as one of her favorite love songs blared through the speakers. "I love this song." It was 'Everything' by Lifehouse. Ikuto smiled down at her.

"I like it too. I can actually perform this song on my violin."

"Really?" Amu looked up at him, stunned. "I'd like to hear that one day."

"I'll make sure it happens."

The air seemed to become warmer as the song continued, and the light from the sunset overhead on the horizon made Amu feel as though summer had come early, although it was only approaching spring. She hoped she and Ikuto could spend many summer nights like this, romantic and happy, and right now the threat of Easter seemed like nothing. Right now, it was only him and her. And she wanted eternity to be that way.

--

"That was fun, Ikuto. Thank you."

They were heading back to the hotel now; night had fallen, and with it, crispier air. Amu shivered and wrapped the long sleeves of her dress more tightly around her. Ikuto rubbed her back, trying to warm her. "Once we get in, I'll order us some hot chocolate."

They turned the corner and Ikuto stopped suddenly, his eyes wide.

"Ikuto?" Amu stared at wearily. "What's wrong?"

"Something's wrong here.." He was staring around fearfully. "Something doesn't feel right."

"Wha--? Ikuto, what is...?"

But Ikuto raised a finger, silencing her. He didn't speak for a minute, and Amu's heart thumped in fear in her chest. "It's gone, now. I.. I just had a bad feeling, that's all. Let's go."

"O-okay." Amu blinked in confusion, but despite his urge to let it go, he was walking faster and Amu had to strain to keep up.

Once they were inside, Ikuto seemed to had forgotten all about the hot chocolate and instead went straight to his bag and took out his high school uniform before throwing some of Amu's clothes at her. "Change. Quickly. After you do, we need to leave."

"W-why? Ikuto, what's wrong?" She was really starting to get scared now.

"I can't tell you right now. Once we leave, I'll tell you. Please just do it." He was racing through the room as though he'd suddenly gotten an adrenaline rush, and Amu, knowing it wasn't best to keep questioning him right now, went inside the bathroom and changed. When she came out, she saw Ikuto already in his uniform and was momentarily taken aback at how fast he was actually moving. She'd never seen him so motivated. When he saw her, he seized her by the wrist and brought her to him, and whispered in her ear.

"It's Easter, Amu. I can feel it. They're here."

Not even a split-second later, there was a loud scream and several gunshots. Shrieking in fear, Amu clung to Ikuto, who instead pulled away from her and seized their bags, throwing Amu's at her. "We need to go before they get up here. I'll chara change and go out the wind --"

There was not even a second's warning; a gunshot erupted seemingly very close to them, and the door blasted open, revealing Yukari Sanjou and many Easter guards. Upon seeing them, the woman smirked. "Well, well. Found you at last."

Ikuto shoved Amu behind him protectively. "Took you an awfully long time, didn't it?"

Yukari eyed him venomously. "This is no time to be a smart ass, boy. You and your little girlfriend are about to die, and this time, I'll make sure I do more than just wound you. And let me ask you something; have you managed to figure out how we're tracking you yet?" She sneered.

"Yeah, I've figured it out." Ikuto growled. Amu was clueless. He hadn't mentioned anything to her about it...

"Of course, Kazoumi knows you're smart. And he knew you'd take the violin along with you like a gullible little puppet so we can find you easily." Yukari's sneering became more pronounced. And annoying.

The violin? Amu looked at Ikuto, stunned, but he winked down at her, attempting to show he'd just made Yukari tell him now. Eyes widening in realization, Amu looked straight ahead, silently happy that this exchange wasn't noticed by the gloating woman.

"Well, we've done enough talking by now." Yukari sighed. "Boys, take care of these two. Start with Ikuto."

The guards moved foward, and Ikuto and Amu tensed in the middle of the room as they came closer, their barrel heads staring them in the face. Amu wanted to move foward to protect Ikuto, but he firmly kept his arm out to keep her from doing so. His eyebrows were hunched angrily, his body stiff and tense, eyes blazed in determination and zero fear. One of the guards pulled the trigger, shooting Ikuto directly in the arm, making him release his protective hold on Amu. Another shot; blood spattered from his wounded leg, bullet in the exact same place he'd been shot before. Ikuto fell to his knees on the ground, teeth grit in pain, and Amu screamed in fear, and yet his arm reached up and seized Amu, pulling her down with him so that her head was protectively sheilded in his chest.

"I'm going to fight them.." Ikuto whispered loud enough for her to hear. "When they're distracted.. I need you to chara change and get out."

"What?" Amu whispered back. "No, I won't leave you!"

"You will." Ikuto growled at her. "I'll have Yoru take you out if I have to. He already knows. Do it, Amu. The end for me is here, but I'm not going out without a fight. And at least not until I know you're safe."

Tears leaked thick and fast down Amu's cheeks. "I won't do it. I won't. I can't leave you here!"

"How pathetic." Yukari's voice cut through their whispered conversation, scrutinizing Amu. "You plan to cling to him and die here? How pathetic, little girl. Why he's willing to give his life to protect you is beyond me. But... you should know that once we're done with him, you're next. But we'll be quick with you; for Ikuto, though, this is going to be a slow, painful death for all the trouble he's caused us."

Ikuto growled and glared up at her. "I hope you all burn in hell."

Yukari chuckled. "No, that's what you'll be doing, dear boy. But not even hell itself will torture you enough to satisfy me or Kazoumi. Give him another dose of pain." She called to more guards.

Four guards jumped forward, and before Amu or Ikuto could react, two had seized Ikuto, a knife to his neck, and two others held Amu around the waist, a gun to her head.

"Ikuto!" She called, her voice terrified. Her body shook in terror.

"Amu.." Ikuto groaned.

Yukari walked up to him, and grabbed a fistful of his midnight blue hair, looking him in the eye. "Say your last minute goodbyes to the girl you love." She back-handed him clean across the face, busting his upper lip, and the guards holding him let out barks of malicious laughter and one brandished his knife, slicing Ikuto across the shoulder. He screamed, the first actual scream of pain Amu had heard from him, and she let out an agonized cry and screamed his name repeatedly, as the guard holding him released him and he fell to the floor, his body shaking. Yukari gave a shriek of laughter and kicked his prone body in the ribs with her high heels and at the sound of Ikuto's shrill scream and the crack that followed, a rib or two had just broken.

"IKUTO!" Amu began kicking and screaming trying to get free and the guard holding her placed a hand over her mouth, the one next to him pulling out his own knife and holding it threatingly to Amu's neck. Tears were still falling down her cheeks, and she choked back a sob as Yukari pulled out the black handgun she'd used once before and pointed it directly at Ikuto's head, her hand beginning to pull the trigger.

"NO!" Amu screamed so hard she thought her throat had torn. "NO! DON'T! GET UP! IKUTO! IKUTO!"

And then something happened that none of them were expecting; Amu was blinded with a bright light that filled up the entire room like an overpowered light bulb; the lock around her neck gave a shudder of intense power, causing the guards to release her as though burned; Yukari accidentally dropped her gun and gasped, the guards behind her giving similar shouts of terror. Amu glanced back at Ikuto and saw a light similar to the lock's emanating from his left pants pocket and merge together with it. There was nothing but light as she fell to the floor, crawling towards to what she thought was Ikuto, unable to see, and the screams of Easter's guards sounded all around her. She didn't know what was happening, but knew she had to reach Ikuto. If she didn't reach him...

Her arms weakly found his still body, and the last words that whispered from Amu's mouth before darkness claimed her was the words she hadn't gotten to say to Ikuto before death had claimed him... _"I love you."_

--

"Amu!"

Someone was calling her name. An angel. The only angel she wanted to hear. Was this Heaven? It had to be; she could only be hearing his voice if she was dead, too. "Amu! Please wake up! Amu!"

But her body was aching; there was no pain in death. So she couldn't be... but then...

"I-Ikuto?" She murmurmed, her eyes slowly opening. Her vision blurred, but she could see the relieved face of the only person she wanted to see directly over her. She closed her eyes and reopened them, clearing the fogginess and took in his face. He was relieved and smiling.

"Oh, Amu. I'm so glad you're all right!"

Amu lifted her head slightly to see that she was in Ikuto's lap and that Easter's guards were scattered motionlessly all around them. "W-what?" She forced herself into a sitting position. "W-what happened?"

"I don't know." Ikuto answered. "I just remember seeing a blinding white light and thought I was dead, but when I came to, all of these guards were dead."

"W-wha?! Dead?" Amu looked at him with wide eyes. "The Humpty Lock seemed to have emanated some kind of power, but.. I don't know how it could do this kind of thing.."

Ikuto's eyebrowns narrowed in confusion. "This is weird. Somehow, the Humpty Lock killed all of these guards."

Amu looked around at them. "And.. and you're sure they're dead, right?"

"Yeah, I checked them. And Yukari bailed when she saw what happened."

"The key!" Amu exclaimed suddenly. "The Dumpty Key! It had the same light as the Humpty Lock! They must have reacted to each other!"

"Perhaps," Ikuto agreed. "But are our items even capable of this power? This is just... too freaky..."

"Yeah.." Amu shivered, and entangled herself from Ikuto, noticing the slash on his shoulder. "Ikuto... you're hurt..."

Ikuto winced. "I'm.. yeah. A bit. She cracked one of my ribs, I think. But... they didn't hurt you... did they, Amu?" He looked at her in concern.

"No, they... they were going to, but when Yukari was going to kill you and go to me, the lock and key reacted."

"I'm so glad you're all right, Amu.." Ikuto pulled Amu into a hug, even though he was injured badly and was probably hurting himself more. After a moment, he released her, and used her as support to get to his feet, but quickly fell to his knees.

"Ikuto!" Amu seized his arm in fear, but he attempted again and this time managed to stand at least somewhat upright. But she could see the intense pain in his face, the way his breaths were short and desperate. "Ikuto.. you need to see a doctor. Immediately."

"No." He grunted. "I can't until we get out of here."

"But..! You need medical help!" Amu protested, but again Ikuto shook his head in disagreement.

"Now that I know how they're tracking me, I'm going to destroy the tracking system and get us out of here." He limped slowly to the violin case which he opened and looked over the violin itself. "Ah, found it. It was hidden good, and it's small, too. Sneaky bastards." He growled. He tossed the tracking device, a small camera the size of a child's bellybutton on to the carpet and brought his good foot down on it, smashing it into pieces. "I knew they were tracking us somehow, and probably shouldn't have overlooked it being on the violin, but I haven't played it for days, so I hadn't looked. Rather stupid of me." He grinned at Amu. "They're not going to be happy when they discover the guards, though. They may already know."

"Yeah." Amu sighed. Ikuto seized their already packed bags and handed Amu her's while slinging his violin and school bag over his shoulders. He groaned in pain as the stap hit his injury, but made no other sounds of pain. Amu could not understand how he was bearing it; two gun shot wounds within two days and now a cut. It didn't help that he was refusing medical assistance. He was already halfway out the door and Amu joined him, neither of the two bothering to lock the door. " Ikuto, don't we need to check out before we walk out of here?"

He gave a bitter chuckle. "Can't. Easter killed them before they got upstairs to us."

Amu gasped as they entered the main hall at laid eyes on the two hotel hosts, lying in pools of their own blood at the security desks. A few tears slid down her face as she thought of them, and how much they'd helped them, and Ikuto's eyes were sad as he gazed at their fallen forms. "Let's go.. Amu.." He spoke softly. Amu nodded and followed him out of the hotel doors, into yet another attempt to escape Easter's eyes.


	13. 30 Minutes Of Threats

**Author's Note: **Yay, another chappie. So sorry it's late. Had writer's block. :( Hope you enjoy! And I know the charas have hardly been in it, but I'll be including them a little bit more now.

--

**CHAPTER 13: 30 MINUTES OF THREATS**

It seemed it took all of Ikuto's willpower to not collapse on the sidewalk as he and Amu departed from the hotel. He limped and groaned as he took the smallest steps, his back hunched from the continuous pressure of carrying his violin over his wounded shoulder and fighting the pain from that as well as the pains in his bloodied leg and arm. Amu and her charas, finally coming out of their eggs, watched him in worry, and a few minutes later it apparently had become too much and he'd fallen to the ground on his hands and knees. Yoru gasped.

"Ikuto!" Amu and Yoru called his name in terror, but the blue-haired teen shook his head.

"I'm okay, Amu. Just dizzy." He tried to stand again, but Amu gently pushed him back down.

"You can't walk yet, Ikuto. You need to rest a minute, at least. You need medical help, and don't try to deny it. You know you do." She tried to reason with him, and Ikuto lifted his head to gaze into her eyes for a few seconds, surpirsing Amu with the pain written clearly across the sapphire irises, and gave a soft sigh and finally gave in.

"Okay, I'll do it. For you, Amu..."

Yoru bobbed up and down in the air in front of Ikuto's head. "We need to get him somewhere to rest, nya."

Su frowned, looking around. "But where, desu?"

Amu sighed. "I don't know. I'll go look arou--"

"Hey!"

Amu and Ikuto's heads snapped up at the sound of a man's voice, who looked like he was in his mid-30's, who was running towards them. "Are you okay? I saw you fall." He stopped in front of Ikuto, looking worried.

"He's hurt pretty bad," Amu said before Ikuto could open his mouth. "Two gun shot wounds at the least and a cut wound. Probably a broken rib."

The man's eyes widened. "Oh, my. Would you two like to come to my pub? It's just down the road. You can stay there for as long as you need."

"No," Ikuto growled.

"Yes, sir. Please." Amu answered the man, talking over Ikuto."Don't listen to him; he's very stubborn. "

The man laughed lightly. "Yeah, I can see that." He looked from Ikuto to Amu. "I'll support him inside. Why don't you take the luggage and then when you're inside, go to the back and then up the stairs to the first door. It's my apartment. You guys can stay there for awhile."

"Thank you very much." Amu smiled gratefully. The man nodded, and Amu seized her bag and helped lift Ikuto's violin off of him, careful not to disturb the wound and slung it on her back, walking two paces before losing her balance. It was very heavy. "Jeez, Ikuto, how do you carry this around all the time?" She corrected her footing and continued walking just as Ikuto gave a small chuckle and the man helped Ikuto to his feet and wrapped his uninjured arm around his head.

"It helps when I'm not a small fry," Ikuto answered dryly, and even without having to look at his face, she could imagine that smirk on his face. Amu scowled as she held the door open waiting for the man and Ikuto. Once they were in, the man locked it and Amu helped support Ikuto up the stairs and inside the apartment before she went back down to retain the luggage. When she came back up, Ikuto was seated on the couch with the man looking over his wounds and looked up at Amu's presence.

"Oh, you can set down the luggage over there," He told her, nodding at the big space between the couch and front door. Amu obeyed and sat down next to Ikuto, watching wearily. The man lifted up Ikuto's sleeve and winced at shoulder wound. "This is a pretty deep wound. How'd you get it?"

"We were attacked by some very old friends," Ikuto answered. "They pretty much have a death sentence on us."

Amu was somewhat shocked by how easily Ikuto was telling a man they didn't know the truth. The man's eyes widened. "What? Why would other kids do this to you guys? I swear, the violence meter for kids these days is --"

"They're not kids," Ikuto cut across him. "They're adults. A bunch of business associates, at that."

"Are you serious?" The man was staring at them as though he couldn't believe it. "I don't understand why such high class people like them would do this to two kids. And try to kill you, worst of all."

"I worked for them." Ikuto told him. "Let's just say that I was their 'tool' and when I couldn't get something done for them, they retaliated and planned to have me killed. And they want Amu for another reason entirely, but.."

"Is it because of those little charas?" The man asked, cocking his head to the side. Amu's mouth dropped open.

"You.. you can see charas?!"

The man laughed. "Yeah. I've been able to for quite a few years now, don't know why when most people can't, but yeah I can see them."

"Wow." Amu blinked. "The charas have a part to play in why they're after us, but it's mainly for this." She held up the Humpty Lock. "It allows me to transform with the charas. Ikuto has the key that allows him to do the the charas are eggs, the company known as Easter, the one that's after us, has resources to turn the eggs into x-eggs, or the embodiment of broken dreams. And they're searching for a specific egg called the Embryo, an egg that can grant anyone's wish."

"Really?" The man went back to working on Ikuto. "An egg that can grant people's wishes. Sounds really amazing. And they're after you because you couldn't get the Embryo?" He asked Ikuto. Ikuto simply nodded.

"Yeah."

"Jesus." The man sighed, shaking his head. "This is horrible. Kids like you shouldn't be having to deal with this. Do you live around here? My name's Dave, by the way."

"Nice to meet you, Dave. And no, we don't, exactly." Amu answered. "We're on the run from them. We've been gone from home for maybe three days now, and we've been attacked at least five times within this week, and we just barely escaped again."

The man named Dave stared at her, stunned. "I feel for you guys. I really do. I don't know how this can be allowed to happen." He looked at Ikuto. "Once I patch you up, I'm going to cook you guys something to eat. I'm sure you're starved. You guys can stay the night here and if you want tomorrow you can decide what you're going to do. Although I have no problem with you staying as long as you need. I'm not scared of those bastards. They show up here, and I'll knock them all out."

Amu laughed, but Ikuto shook his head. "Thank you very much, sir, but I don't want to put you in danger any longer than you have to be. We'll stay the night, because I know _she_--" He waved a hand at Amu -- "Won't allow me to leave until I'm at least somewhat better."

Amu huffed, crossing her arms but Dave grinned. "You got yourself a good girlfriend there, son. She's young, but she certainly has a good head on her shoulders." Amu blushed and smiled slightly as Dave got up and walked over to a cabinet behind him, taking out a wad of bandages and a pair of tweezers. "I need to get the bullets out and then patch it up. After you eat, I advise you two to sleep. I doubt you've had much."

"That would be nice. Thank you." Amu whispered.

He sat back down in front of Ikuto and gently began pulling the bullet out from his flesh. Ikuto winced a few times, but like he had done with Amu, he kept it together. The man frowned, poking tenderly at the skin. "They missed vital organs and arteries but the skin looks like it's going to heal with a scar, most definitely. The same for your shoulder. It's a long cut."

"Scars.." Amu's eyes became downcast. Ikuto glanced at her.

"Amu, it's okay. I really don't care about the scars." He told her gently. Dave gave one last pull and Ikuto jumped slightly, the small bullet held between the tweezers mingled with blood.

"Pretty strong bullet, too." Dave observed. "Would've killed you instantaneously had it hit a vital organ or artery. You're lucky they missed the most sensitive areas."

"Yeah." Ikuto sighed. "They seem to be wanting to wound us first before they kill us. It's like they're playing with us."

"They might be." Dave nodded. "You got shot in the leg, too, right? I see the blood." He lifted Ikuto's right pants leg up and began working on taking out that bullet."Whoa. This one looks really bad. How many times were you shot here?"

Ikuto grit his teeth in a wince as Dave poked at it. "At least three. Maybe more."

Dave looked at him with a horrified expression. "Jesus, you're damn lucky to be alive! And lucky I got to you when I did. You could have internal bleeding and you wouldn't even know it. I think this is beyond me. You need a hospital."

"That's what I've been telling him," Amu put in. "But he's so stubborn he won't go."

Ikuto eyed her with a glare. "I'm fine. It's you I'm worried for, you got shot yourself."

Amu crossed her arms and returned the glare. "I did, but it's not as bad as yours. They just grazed me. It'll heal in a few days. But you, you got shot in the same leg multiple times. Did it ever cross your mind that should you get too much of it, your leg could be amputated? The nerves could be dead, Ikuto!"

"That's right," Dave said gently, pressing on Ikuto's ribs. "They could be. And you definietly have cracked ribs. You can see them sticking out."

Ikutosaid nothing, simply staring at the carpet. After a moment, he spoke. "Fine. I'll go to a hospital."

"Thank you." Amu whispered, relieved. "You need to be in good health if we have to keep running from them.."

"I just don't want to be in a hospital for days at a time when Easter can track us at any given moment," Ikuto confided. "If I'm bed ridden, who will protect you?"

Dave coughed. "I can do that for awhile."

"Besides," Amu said quickly, seeing Ikuto about to open his mouth in protest, "Didn't you say that the tracking system was dismantled? They can't track us if they don't have sources."

"But that's the thing," Ikuto told her. "If they have other sources other than the tracking systems, we're in trouble. They could have guards all over."

"Well, we're going to have to depend on luck for now," Dave sighed. "I got a car, I can drive you to the hospital. Get you both checked out. And I am recommending, and I know you're too stubborn for your own good, Ikuto, but you need to stay here for a few days at most until you can walk again."

Amu glanced at Ikuto, hoping he would listen. The blue-haired teen sighed deeply. "Okay. I'll do it. Thank you, Dave."

Dave grinned. "No problem." He helped Ikuto to his feet and helped him out the door, Amu following. Once they were outside and Ikuto had carefully been placed into the back of the car, Amu jumped into the passengers seat as Dave started the car. Night had fallen. Amu gazed up at the moon, wondering if her parents and her friends were seeing the same thing. The world, for her right now, was etched with blood and fear. The threat of death loomed over her and Ikuto, while her parents and the Guardians were safely tucked away into their beds and eating gracious meals. They had a home to return to. Right now... she and Ikuto did not. For the first time since they'd gone on the run, Amu felt slightly envious of those who took everything for granted.

They reached the hospital and Dave and Amu supported Ikuto inside and a security guard came up to them, looking from Ikuto to the two helping him. "What happened here?" He asked curiously.

"He was shot multiple times and cut." Amu explained.

The man blinked. "How long ago was this?"

"Around 3 hours ago. We only just managed to convince him to go to a hospital."

The security guard shook his head. "We'll get you into an operating room right away to take out the bull --"

"I've already taken them out," Dave explained. "I'm worried he has internal bleeding or nerve damage or something, though. And I believe a rib or two was broken."

Despite being cut off, the gaurd nodded. "Okay. Here." He grabbed a wheelchair by his desk and helped Ikuto into it. "I'll get you into a room right now and find a doctor. Are you two going to wait in the waiting room, or..?"

"I'll wait." Dave said, smiling slightly. He leaned down and whispered in Amu's ear. "To give you two some alone time."

Amu blushed. "I-I'll go with Ikuto." Ikuto's lips twitched into a near smile.

"Okay." The guard nodded. "Follow me, please."

He wheeled Ikuto -- who looked incredibly cute with a pout on his face in Amu's eyes -- and lead Amu into a front room, and left to get a doctor. Amu took a seat on one of the chairs and had to smile at Ikuto's downcast expression.

"Ikuto, at least you'll be better after this... thanks for listening to me."

He sighed, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry." He whispered. Opening his eyes again and seeing Amu's confused expression, he elaborated. "I'm sorry I was being so... selfish. I thought about what I would have done if I were alone in this, but I should have realized that it's not just about me. It's about you too. And I need to be in the best physical health to protect you. I'm sorry, Amu."

"N-no need to apologize.." Amu blushed, turning away. "I know you're not dependant on anyone... but... even the best fall down sometimes, right? I told you I'm here for you, like you're here for me. You don't have to be so strong when you're with me. You can only take so much. You're not super man, you know.."

He chuckled lightly. "No. I guess I'm not."

There was a long silence. How long they sat there, Amu didn't know, but it felt like forever. The awkward air.. it was nearly suffocating. The door opened then, and two doctors entered, looking concerned. "We were informed that you were shot multiple times?" They asked Ikuto, who nodded.

One bit his lip. "Since the bullets were already removed, we can only do so much. We can give you antibiotics if an infection develops, we can stitch the wounds up and check for internal bleeding and nerve damage as the one fellow in the waiting room requested.."

"I'm just worried about internal bleeding and nerve damage," Amu said quickly.

The other nodded, walking over to Ikuto and lifting his leg slightly to gaze at the wounds. "These do look pretty damn bad, but not enough to cause internal bleeding or amputation..." He said. "We could do an x-ray for nerve damage, but the bullets that entered the flesh seem to have been pretty small and likely wouldn't cause much complications other than severe pain."

"So I was right.." Ikuto muttered quitely, only Amu hearing him as the doctors had engaged in conversation of what to do. Amu gave him a questioning look, but Ikuto jerked his head, signaling he'd tell her once the doctors left the room.

"We'll get an x-ray prepared for this and for your ribs," The taller of the two told them. "After that, we'll stitchthewounds upand go from there. If it's worse than it appears, you may need to be in the hospital for a few days." He caught Ikuto's disappointed expression and quickly spoke again, "But from the looks of things, it doesn't seem too bad. Could've been much worse, had they hit an artery. Granted, you'll have one or two scars from them.."

"Thank you, doc." Ikuto said in gratitude.

"No problem at all. I'll go get that x-ray scheduled immediately. Dr. Jenkinson will check out your cut." He left the room, and the other doctor slowly pulled at Ikuto's ripped shirt at the shoulder and checked the wound.

"This one will definitely give you a scar. You lost some blood, but not too much. Not enough to get a transfusion. I will say this. You're very lucky."

"Yeah," Ikuto nodded numbly. Amu knew that just being told he was lucky was nothing compared to what Ikuto himself was thinking. She could sense that inside, the fact of how lucky both he and Amu were was more overwhelming than what he was expressing.

After some poking and prodding of the skin, the doctor turned the door knob. "I'll get the stitching equipment. You'll be in better shape in a few days at the most." He stepped out the door and shut it quietly. Immediately after, Amu looked at Ikuto.

"What did you mean before? You were right about what?"

He caught her eye. "I was right about Easter just toying with us. They seem to be missing our vital areas and leaving us just wounded."

"But... do you mean they really _aren't _trying to kill us, then?" Amu asked him.

"No, they are," Ikuto explained. "But it seems as if they're warning us right now. Letting us know what we're up against. They were hoping to kill us the first time, but we escaped them. So they got more desperate. They know they have to wound us first so we're unable to chara change or transform, so they do that. But still, we got away. With more desperation, they'll get more dangerous. We've been lucky from here on in. All up until now was just practice."

Amu's heart was pounding thunderously in her chest. "And if.. they can't get to us by wounding us, and they're growing more desperate... do you think they'll hurt our families, my friends..?"

"Right now, I can't promise they will or they won't, Amu." He spoke truthfully. "Gozen, and _him_ are bound to be pissed off once they learned that most of the guards are dead. They'll want to know how it happened, and before they kill us, they'll want to get the answers out of us."

"But we don't know!" Amu said quickly. "We don't know how it happened! How can we possibly...?"

"And that's the answer they'll want to hear, Amu. To kill us quickly. If we know the answer, they'll try to get it out of us."

"So are you saying we should try and find out what happened?" Amu asked him.

Ikuto nodded. "Yes. While we're on the run, we need to try and figure out how the lock and key managed to cause that. Not that I intend to tell Easter, but for ourselves, we need to know. If this new power is something that can help us in the long run, we need to use it to our fullest potential."

Amu opened her mouth to respond, but couldn't. She knew he was right. Whatever new power they had, they had to make sure it was only them who knew it, and only them who could use it.

--

Those passing by Easter headquarters the next morning could have given reports that a murder had been committed inside the company the screams of anger emanating from it were so loud and strong. Kazoumi stood, fuming, tossing a chair out the window across from him, causing screams from the people both inside his office and those on the outside. Not caring if it hit someone, the managing director began pacing like a dangerous caged animal, the veins in his forehead popping with the rage. Without warning, he tossed another chair into the new satelight feed, shards of broken glass falling onto the carpet.

The remaining employees of Easter cowered in fear at their boss. Yukari even seemed unnerved.

"B-boss," She tried, but he gave her such a dangerous look the phrase _'if looks could kill'_ ran through her mind and she immediately shut up. Right now, his anger was not to be tested. He was, at this point, a ticking time bomb.

"Tis..tis..." No one in the office could make out what the hell he was saying his voice was so deformed with rage. "_This... this_... is only the... beginning.." He spoke in large pants, his face growing quickly redder. "Sanjou.. I don't care what you have to do to bring her here. Get the boy's sister, Utau. If you have to harm her to get her here, that's fine. But do not kill her. Not quite yet, anyway. Once I get my dear step-son back home, we'll dispose of both of them. I shall make sure Ikuto suffers more than he's ever suffered before. He'll wish he was dead, and once I get my hands on him, I will wring his neck. Call off the hunting party. Ikuto will come to us now. And when he does... we'll kill him and his little girlfriend."

"U-understood, b-boss." Sanjou bowed quickly and nearly ran out the door. Kazoumi shot glares at everyone else in the room.

"What the hell are you all standing there for?! Get the hell out!"

The Easter idiots all scrambled out the door and slammed it, leaving Kazoumi alone. Looking much like a deformed reptile, the man proceeded to toss over another chair.

--

It was now over 24 hours since they'd gone to the hospital. Now lying on the couch with his wounded leg wrapped in many bandages and sipping on a Pepsi, Ikuto seemed to like the idea of staying at Dave's for awhile quite well now. Amu sat on the arm chair next to him, watching a talk show Dave had put on. Neither of the two kids seemed very interested in it, and Dave himself seemed to be lost in thought. Amu finished her drink and set it down on the table, bringing her knees to her chin and gazing at Ikuto. His complexion looked better, healthier, since the wounds had been stitched and no nerve problems or internal bleeding had been found. She herself, having been checked out and bandaged up, now felt almost as good physically as she had the day that they left. Her leg only throbbed every now and then, but not enough to cause enormous pain. She smiled slightly. Ikuto was probably feeling much worse. Although the gun shot wounds and the cut weren't as bad as she'd thought, the fact remained that Ikuto did indeed have a broken rib. Bandages now were wrapped around his stomach.

Dave got up to glance at the clock on the wall, and Amu followed his bodily movements with her eyes. The man sighed. "It's nearly Midnight, guys. I'm going to head to bed. You can stay up if you want."

"No, it's okay." Amu said quietly, stifling a yawn. "I'm tired myself. How about you, Ikuto?"

"A little." Ikuto admitted, swinging his leg slowly off of the cushion. "I'll be in the room in a minute. You can go without me if you want."

"Okay." Amu blinked. "Is there something wrong, Ikuto?"

"No, I just want to clean up our mess." He told her, getting to his feet in a limp and taking the many cans of soda. A few dropped from his grasp. "Shit."

Amu rushed forward and caught them before they hit the floor. Although they were empty, she still wanted to help. "Ikuto, let me help." She smiled gently at him, and he managed a small one in return.

"Okay, then."

Amu ran into the kitchen and tossed the cans away when she heard the sound of ringing. "Hey, Ikuto, can you get that for me?" Dave called from the bedroom. Heading back into the room, she saw Ikuto answering the call and pressing the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

Not even a second later, the remaining four cans fell from Ikuto's arms and his eyes widened, a look of fear in his eyes so evident that Amu became frozen on the spot. "Y-you.." Ikuto's voice was even trembling slightly in fear. "How did you get this number?"

"I-Ikuto?" Amu's voice sounded much like a squeak as she tried to force the question out. "Ikuto, who is...?"

Dave came running out of his room, and stopped in the doorway at seeing Ikuto and Amu's frozen expressions. "Amu?" He looked at the girl. "What's..?"

"I don't know.." Amu answered. Ikuto lowered the phone from his ear quickly and met Amu's eyes.

"Amu, go into my bag, quickly, and bring out a small black device. Hurry."

Wasting no time, Amu obeyed, nearly jumping across the room and ripped open Ikuto's bag, fumbling around inside until she found what he'd mentioned. Handing it to him, Ikuto hurriedly placed it on the phone, fitting it just right. Amu blinked in confusion. Dave seemed as confused as she was. Ikuto growled as he pressed the phone to his ear again, his hands shaking.

"Why would I tell you that?" Ikuto's voice was deep with hatred. "You, who is out to kill me and Amu? You want us, come find us. Haven't had much luck so far have you?"

Finally understanding who it was on the other line and the reason for Ikuto's reaction, Amu quickly rushed over to him, pressing her ear against Ikuto's chest to hear the words Kazoumi was saying.

"You really are a smart mouth over the phone line." Came his reply. "But we outsmarted you, you cocky little bastard. For answering this call, we can now trace you wherever the hell you're hiding."

Amu gasped, but Ikuto shook his head and whispered down into her left ear. "He thinks that. But that device is to make phone calls untraceable."

Dave breathed a sigh of relief, coming up to them now. "That was smart."

"Oh, so you got help?" Came Kazoumi's cold remark. Ikuto grunted.

"I don't see how that's any of your business."

Kazoumi chuckled. "Perhaps not, but I do have something to tell you that is quite _your_ business."

"What makes you think I want to hear a word you have to say?" Ikuto growled into the receiver.

"Oh, you'll listen." Kazoumi said threatingly. "If you dare to hang up, she'll die."

"Amu's here with me, you fucking idiot. You can't harm her until you get to me."

Another chuckle. "Who said anything about that pink haired harlot? I mean someone else entirely."

"Don't you dare talk about Amu like -- " Ikuto nearly yelled, but a scream on the other end made his eyes widen in terror.

"Utau.."

Amu's breath hitched in her throat, the room spinning around her. Was Easter going to...?

"Yes, your precious little sister is officially in my possession." Kazoumi snickered. "So here's the deal, Ikuto. You want your sister to be released, alive and unharmed, you will return to Tokyo within the next 24 hours. If you don't, if you manage to go past the time limit, no matter what stupid excuse you have, I'll slit her throat."

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Ikuto screamed, and Amu threw her head into his chest, the fear overtaking her body like never an emotion had done before. Dave gasped in shock.

"Don't underestimate me, Ikuto. I will do it. You reveal yourself to Easter, with the girl, in 24 hours, and your sister will be left alive. In exchange, your life will be taken by me. Quite a cheap price to pay, don't you think?"

Ikuto growled, his whole body shaking in fear and rage. "I swear to God... you so much as lay a hand on her... and you won't have to worry about killing me and Amu. I'll be the one killing you!"

"Feeling quite bold, are you?" Kazoumi's smirk was evident on his face even behind the phone line. "You may have outsmarted us with that little trick you just pulled by keeping that line untraceable, and escaping us within the last week, and killing my guards, but you can't escape your death. You will die by my hand, and now the choice is up to you. You want your sister, you give yourself to me. Think it over."

And before Ikuto could respond, the call ended. Simply listening to the constant beep on the other line, Ikuto slowly replaced the phone, his hair shielding his face. Amu clung to his waist, tears falling from her eyes. Dave simply walked over and hugged them gently, the moon's light feeling as every bit as cold as the director's voice.


	14. 30 Minutes Of Comfort

**Author's Note: **Hi, guys. Again, sorry for the late update.. damned lack of inspiration. :( Quite short, pretty much filler, but I'm preparing for the next few chapters where things will be hectic. XD One minute it'll be calm, the next minute it'll be an all out war. Expect the unexpected now. :)

I had a question from a reviewer asking why I made Dave's name an American name as opposed to a Japanese name. The thing is that this character, as well as the hotel attendants, have hardly any relevance to the plot and are just there as side characters. So I didn't put much thought into them, and just gave them any old name. Since I don't know many Japanese names, I gave them American names for the hell of it. But there will probably not be any more side characters introduced. The rest are all from the canon. :)

----

**CHAPTER 14: 30 MINUTES OF COMFORT**

Dawn was approaching, the sun beginning to appear on the edge of the horizon. Hours had passed since the director's chilling phone call, announcing he had Utau in his grasp. Ikuto had not said a word since, sitting despairingly beside Amu on the couch with his hands covering his face. His body was rigid, and he gave no sign of moving soon. Amu wondered whether he had fallen asleep or not, but did not even try and see. She barely looked at him, chancing a glance out of the corner of her eye when the silence became too much. Dave had gone to bed an hour ago, though he, too, seemed unnerved by the news that the director of Easter had given them. For the first time, Amu knew Ikuto was at a loss of what to do now; they were without a plan, no prominent direction. No alternative but to give themselves over. Leaning her head on her knees, Amu sighed quietly and Ikuto finally made a stiff movement, removing his hands that were covering his eyes slowly to gaze at Amu. Catching his eye, they simply stare at each other, and Amu could see the tiredness in his blood shot eyes, how tired he was simply not from staying up into the early morning hours, but tired of this chase Easter was unrelenting in giving. He was tired of running, and his decision was etched in his dark, blue eyes much like the pain was clearly written in them.

"We're going back.." Amu stated slowly, not questioning. There was no reason to question his intentions. He simply nodded, removing his gaze from her to the sandy carpet.

"We really don't have a choice," He whispered. "I knew from the start that they'd get fed up with us and go after one of our family members. It was inevitable. They want us, they'll use who ever and what ever they can to get us handed to them on a silver platter. Utau.. she doesn't know where we ran off to. So when they don't get the answer out of her... and if I don't go... she'll be..." His voice cracked slightly, and he lowered his head so that his midnight blue hair was shielding his face from Amu again.

Narrowing her eyes, the pink-haired girl slowly got up from the couch and positioned herself so that she was directly in front of Ikuto. Her hands cupped his face, lifting it to meet her eyes. Ikuto's eyes widened slightly at the determined look on her face. "Ikuto... I know you're upset right now, but... this could very well be a trap from Easter.."

He considered her for a moment. "It could be," He admitted, "But that scream..."

"They have many tapes from her performances. How hard would it be for them to alter the sound so that it sounds as if she's screaming? I think... we need to get real confirmation she's with them before we go back. If she's safely at home, there's no need to go back." Amu's expression did not waver.

Ikuto smirked slightly. "Good thinking. This is probably a trap. We should get a hold of someone and --" But he was cut short when the sound of his cell phone emanated a loud, recurring ring. Glaring, Ikuto seized it from his bag and, with his hands shaking, answered.

"Figures you would have this." He said shortly. He removed the phone from his ear and held up a finger at Amu's inquring expresion, and pressed a button at the bottom, and seconds later, the director's voice was emanating through the speaker phone.

"It would be stupid of me to not have it," The director said coldly. "Like I said before, I know everything about you. Every where you hide, every where you run. I have access to everything."

Ikuto grit his teeth. "Yeah, so you think. You don't seem to have access to where I am right now, though, do you? Seems as if you don't know every where I go."

The director chuckled evilly. "That's irrelevant, because soon you will come to me. Why chase after you when you'll come to me like an obedient dog?"

It was Ikuto's turn to chuckle, a bitter laugh that made Amu's neck hair stand on end for a single moment. "Oh, what makes you think I'll be coming to you, Mr. Director? You're really going to have to do better than pretend you kidnapped my sister in a plan to trap Amu and me. Really, I knew you were stupid, but I didn't think you were _that_ damn stupid."

Amu stifled a laugh as the director growled. "It seems the stupid one is you, Ikuto. I really do have your sister, and in less than.. 19 hours, I will slit her throat if you choose not to come. But that weight will be on your shoulders, not mine. You will be responsible for your sister's death, and the death of your litle girlfriend. I'll make you suffer. Suffer more than you've ever suffered."

"I think you've made that clear before," Ikuto responded in a bored tone. There was a sudden beeping through the phone, a small green light blinking rapidly. "If you want to continue this conversation, you'll have to call back. I have another call." He pressed the green button. "Hello? Oh... Tadase."

Amu's head perked up at the sound of Tadase's voice. "Ikuto, we failed." His voice sounded terrified.

"What are you talking --?"

"They got Utau! Easter! We saw them overpower her and shove her in a car and drive off before we could even get a chance to move! Ikuto, they're... they're going to kill her!"

Ikuto's eyes had never been so wide in fright. His blood ran cold, the phone slipping from his fingers and to the carpet, where Tadase's voice continued to ring out. Amu, knowing Ikuto was too overwhelmed to say anything, seized the phone.

"Tadase, it's Amu. Sorry, he can't talk right now... did they say where they were taking her? What exactly happened?"

"It's nice to hear you, Hinamori-san. Anyway, the other Guardians and I were watching from hidden view, keeping tabs on Utau to make sure she was safe just like Ikuto asked. A black car drove up to her with tires screeching and we automatically knew it was Easter, but we waited to see what would happen. Utau didn't seem to know what was going on until Yukari-san came out and said that Utau was needed at Easter for something. Having to do with you and Ikuto. Utau was saying she didn't know anything, but Yukari grabbed her and put a gun to her head and said that she was going to be used as bait to get you and Ikuto there and if she didn't talk when they got back to headquarters and you two didn't come to them by Midnight tonight, they would kill her." Tadase finished explaining, his voice filled with fright. "I'm so sorry, Ikuto, if you can hear me.."

"It's on speaker," Amu told him, looking up at Ikuto who still stood frozen in front of her. "We're going to let you go, Tadase. We'll call you back in a bit when we decide what to do."

"Okay. Be careful, Hinamori-san. Tell Ikuto to be, too..."

"I will." Amu promised, though she was sure Ikuto had heard. Hanging up, she placed the phone back in his bag and joined Ikuto on the couch again where it appeared his limbs had given out. "Ikuto..." She reached out and squeezed his shoulder, and without warning, he suddenly swept her into his arms, holding her close to his chest tightly, but enough to prevent from hurting her.

"My heart.. aches so badly.." He whispered, his voice overcome with emotion. "She must be... so brave. She'll never tell them anything, even if there were something to tell them. She'll protect me until the end, even though I should be the one protecting her right now. Like I should be protecting you..."

"You are protecting me," Amu told him sternly. "You've protected me too much. So much that you've gotten yourself hurt badly. You've got battle scars from it all. Thank you for protecting me, Ikuto... but... I want to protect you, now.."

Ikuto pulled her slightly away so that he could look at her face. "Amu... not under any circumstance will allow you to --"

"_Allow me_?" Amu growled, removing herself from his arms. Ikuto realized he must have said something offending.

"Amu, I didn't mean it like --"

But her glare did not soften. "I am allowed to do anything, no matter what you say. I love you, and I will do anything it takes to protect you as much as you would protect me. Love is a two-way street, isn't it? We have to protect each other, and I won't let you prevent me from it. I know you would die for me, but you need to wake up and realize I will die for you, too!"

"No," Ikuto's eyes became cold. "You will not die because of m--"

"You idiot!" Amu shrieked, and without even realizing it, smacked him clean across the face. Ikuto's eyes widened in disbelief, pressing his finger tips to his red cheek. Amu was breathing heavily, angrily. "If it comes to that, I will do it! I will do what you do for me! And you're not going to stop me! If you're so selfish to think I'll just let you protect me and not the other way around, maybe you should have never tried to save me! This is something I want to do, something I have to do! I need to know just how much I can protect you! I'm tired of seeing you suffering, and I want to do something about it, Ikuto!"

"But if you die because you were protecting me, that will only make me suffer more," Ikuto said harshly. "I do not want Easter to lay a single finger on you, who is innocent in all of this and did not ask for it. I made the mess, I'll get us out of it."

"You really are stupid," Amu growled coldly. "Don't be so damned stubborn, Ikuto! Let me help you!" As he opened his mouth to reply, Amu silenced him with a hard glare. "Don't argue with me, I'll win. You should know that about me."

He said nothing, looking at the carpet again. Amu stared at him, waiting for him to say something.

"I just don't want to lose you... the only good thing I have in my life." His voice was so low it was almost inaudible.

"I know," Amu's expression softened slightly and she climbed onto his lap, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I don't want to lose you, either..." Tears formed in her eyes, leaking down her face. "We need to decide what we're going to do now.."

"I think it's obvious what we have to do," Ikuto said quietly. "We have to go back... no more running. It's time to fight them face to face..."

"You're right," Amu agreed. "As dangerous as this will be... we have to fight them."

The sun had completely risen now. The light burst through the open window with the crispy, cold air. Amu shivered slightly but not even the renewed cold temperatures could make her lose her resolve; there was no going back now. There had never been any going back from the start of this. The end was only the beginning to the end. It all would become full circle. She and Ikuto were doomed, inevitably, to die. And there was no use trying to fight it. But they would not die without a fight; they would die boldly, proudly, protecting each other, until their very last breath, until their synchronized hearts stopped beating, until their soul's exited their bodies together. Neither of them would have it any other way.


End file.
